A celebration ceremony is planned for the arrival of the research
buoy for the Lake Michigan offshore wind assessment study that will be
conducted by Grand Valley State University, University of Michigan and
Michigan State University. The buoy will support state-of-the-art
research opportunities in Lake Michigan for the next 10 years.
The research buoy, one of three in the world, is an eight-ton,
20-by-10 foot boat-shaped structure that can measure wind
characteristics up to 150 meters above the water using advanced wind
sensor technology. The WindSentinel™ buoy was constructed by AXYS Technologies of
British Columbia, and will come equipped with a Vindicator® laser wind
sensor manufactured by Catch
the Wind Inc. of Virginia.
The launch of the buoy in the Great Lakes is the first
introduction of this technology anywhere in North America, said Arn
Boezaart, director of Grand Valley’s Michigan Alternative and
Renewable Energy Center. “The research buoy and laser pulse technology
represents the most advanced wind measurement technology available and
will help to dramatically increase data affecting the development of
those resources,” he said.
Lake Michigan Offshore Wind Assessment Research Buoy
Dedication
Friday, October 7, 2011, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
Lake
Michigan NOAA/GLERL Field Station, 1431 Beach Street, Muskegon
Media Note: The ceremony is an opportunity to see the buoy
onshore before it is launched in Lake Michigan.
Grand Valley President Thomas J. Haas, T. Arnold (Arn) Boezaart,
Professor and Assistant Dean of the Padnos College of Engineering and
Computing at Grand Valley Charlie Standridge, and Professor and
Director of the Ocean Engineering Laboratory for the University of
Michigan Guy A. Meadows will give remarks; an opportunity to view the
buoy and talk with project researchers will follow.
Following a week of tests on Muskegon Lake, the buoy will move
four miles offshore on Lake Michigan for a month long trial.
Real-time data will be transmitted from the platform to
researchers at Grand Valley, University of Michigan and the Michigan
Natural Features Inventory of Michigan State University (MNFI). The
research will provide information to support possible future
development of offshore wind energy technology in the Great Lakes.
MNFI research will focus on bird and bat flight patterns and migration
studies.
Background
The primary objective of the Lake Michigan wind study assessment
is to gain a better understanding of the potential of offshore wind
energy, as well as other physical, biological and environmental
conditions on the Great Lakes. The research will provide information
for the future development of offshore wind energy technology. In June
2010, the project secured $3.3 million in grants and research funds,
including a $1.33 million energy efficiency grant from the Michigan
Public Service Commission.
Partners
Funding partners include the U.S. Department of Energy, Michigan
Public Service Commission, We Energies, University of Michigan and
Sierra Club.
Research partners include: Grand Valley’s MAREC and Padnos
College of Engineering and Computing; University of Michigan College
of Engineering, School of Natural Resources and Environment and
Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute; and Michigan Natural
Features Inventory, an extension of Michigan State University.
Follow Grand Valley news on Twitter at @GV_Now to view live coverage
of the dedication ceremony.
