Wind LIDAR technology

Measuring the wind with light

Wind LIDAR — Light Detection and Ranging — is the technology reshaping wind measurement. We deploy the full spectrum of remote-sensing systems to capture the atmosphere in unprecedented detail.

How it works

From infrared light to bankable wind speed

A LIDAR unit emits an infrared laser signal into the air. Tiny aerosols carried by the wind scatter that light back toward the sensor. By measuring the Doppler shift of the returned signal, we calculate wind speed and direction at precise heights — remotely, continuously and without disturbing the flow.

Emit

Infrared laser source

Scatter

Aerosols reflect light

Resolve

Doppler shift → wind speed

Offshore wind turbines measured by LIDAR

Area profiling

With ranges up to 10 km+ horizontally, to full boundary layer profiling

Cloud data platform

Manage, visualise and share your wind data

Every campaign flows into our secure cloud data management service, where automated QA/QC, interactive dashboards and one-click reporting turn raw measurements into decisions — accessible to your whole team from anywhere.

Secure cloud

Live dashboards

One-click export

app.oldbaumservices.co.uk/dashboards/north-sea-fls

North Sea FLS Campaign

Buoy 02 · last 30 days

Share Export report

4.2M

Records ingested

98.7%

Data availability

12

Active campaigns

1.8TB

Managed storage

Data availability · last 30 days (%)

Wind profile

Data ingested · GB / month

Automated QA / QC

  • Wind speed range check Pass
  • Sensor drift monitor Pass
  • Availability threshold (95%) Pass
  • Direction spike filter Flagged
  • Timestamp continuity Pass

Illustrative mock-up of the Oldbaum cloud data platform. Figures shown are representative.

Our systems

The full remote-sensing toolkit

Floating LIDAR Systems (FLS) for offshore wind measurement — Oldbaum Services
Full campaign management

Floating LIDAR Systems (FLS)

Buoy-mounted wind LIDAR delivers hub-height wind data offshore at a fraction of the cost and risk of a fixed met mast. Our campaigns utilize systems that align with the Carbon Trust OWA roadmap for pre-commercial and commercial acceptance and IEC61400-50-4.

Stage maturity assessmentIEC50-4 type approvalTI motion compensation
Vertical Profiling LIDAR for offshore wind measurement — Oldbaum Services
Ground-based

Vertical Profiling LIDAR

Pulsed vertical LIDAR measures wind speed and direction across the full rotor plane — from 10 m to beyond 400 m — with no tall structures or planning constraints.

10–400 m rangeIEC 61400-50-2Rapid deploymentCampaign delivery since 2005
Scanning LIDAR for offshore wind measurement — Oldbaum Services
Cutting edge

Scanning LIDAR

Horizontally scanning systems in (dual and single scanning setups) map wind resource, complex flow, turbine wakes and coastal effects across an entire site, unlocking layout optimisation and performance studies impossible with point sensors.

Wake analysisComplex flowMulti-km reachTI measurementsWind ResourceCalibration
Boundary layer detection for offshore wind measurement — Oldbaum Services
Advanced

Boundary layer detection

Ground-based microwave radiometers and profilers detect the structure of the atmospheric boundary layer — temperature, humidity and stability through the vertical column — to characterise the conditions that drive shear, turbulence and energy yield.

Temperature profilingBoundary layer detectionStability classificationQA/QC
Let's talk data

Ready to de-risk your next wind measurement campaign?

Speak with our engineers about wind LIDAR deployment, offshore campaigns and bankable resource assessment tailored to your project.

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