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toring bird and ? sh populations are still being developed, but in the 1940s for the US Navy’s offshore data collection pro- may include use of observers and sophisticated radar systems. gram and was later adapted and used by the National Data

The WindSentinel ? oating LiDAR eliminates the need to con- Buoy Center (NDBC) and Environment Canada as part of struct a meteorological mast and provides all the required data the national networks of permanent buoy stations providing from a moveable and low environmental-impact buoy. Float- weather forecasting. ing LiDAR decreases the overall cost and time to market of The WindSentinel was also designed to be ? exible enough offshore wind developments. to accommodate virtually any sensor and telemetry while be- ing easy to modify as project requirements evolve. As part of

Design Drivers ongoing improvements to our technology, AXYS has recently

The WindSentinel was designed to use the proven metocean begun developing WindSentinel buoys with dual-LiDAR in

NOMAD buoy and a LiDAR capable of measuring wind from order to increase total data availability and to reduce the level a ? oating platform. In selecting the NOMAD hull as the op- of risk of data outage during extreme weather conditions often timal platform, AXYS focused on the following key criteria: expected during wind assessment campaigns. This redundant • The hull needed to be well known and reliable dual-LiDAR con? guration is the ? rst in the world to be de- • The hull needed to have the capacity to support the signed and deployed and re? ects AXYS’ commitment to fund necessary sensor payload research & development to further reduce the overall cost of • The hull needed to be able to support a power supply offshore wind development.

which could be deployed for up to a year between services

AXYS has 25 years of experience of working with the NO- Case Studies

MAD hull, which has an extensive history as a platform for AXYS has sold 11 WindSentinels to projects in the United offshore sensors. The NOMAD hull was originally designed States, Portugal, France, and Taiwan. Here are three case stud- www.marinetechnologynews.com

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