Radar signatures of a vertical-axis wind turbine

Summary form only given. The interference from wind farms on radar systems is a topic of current interest in the radar community. Significant efforts have gone into the assessment and mitigation of wind turbine induced clutter. In particular, the radar signatures of horizontal-axis wind turbines have been well studied based on electromagnetic simulations and measurements. Recently, the US Department of Energy is considering vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWT) as a candidate for offshore wind power generation (Sandia National Laboratories, Sandia Labs News Releases, Jul. 30, 2012 [Online]). Some of the potential advantages of VAWT over its horizontal-axis counterpart include better scalability to large sizes and mechanical simplicity for service and maintenance. From the radar perspective, it is important to evaluate how the radar signatures of a VAWT differ from those of the traditional three-blade horizontal-axis turbine.