Webinar: Wind Forecasting Improvements and the NOAA High Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) Forecasting Model

Featured Speakers:

Dr. Stan Benjamin is a research meteorologist at the NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory (ESRL) in Boulder, CO. Stan received a Ph.D. in meteorology from Penn State and a B.A. in mathematics from Albion College in Michigan. He became a Senior scientist for advanced modeling systems in June 2017 within the NOAA/ESRL Global Systems Division. Before that, Stan was a branch chief for GSD’s modeling teams. Stan has led, with other scientists, development of short-range operational weather forecast models for NOAA including the HRRR, Rapid Refresh, and RUC models. These models have been NOAA’s backbone for short-range weather guidance for decision making for aviation, energy, severe storm prediction, and hydrology applications across the US.

Gunnar Shaffer is an Engineer in SPP Operations – Market Forensics. He joined SPP in 2016 after completing his MSc in Renewable Energy with a specialization in Energy Storage from Universität Oldenburg, Germany. His BSc Engineering was obtained from John Brown University where he specialized in Renewable Energy Power Systems. Before moving toSPP he worked at the United Nations in Geneva Switzerland on the West African Power Pool for the COP21 in Paris. He is currently working on wind and solar forecasting accuracy improvements and the design for integration of utility scale batteries into the SPP footprint. His greatest interest in life is traveling and using engineering to break down cultural barriers, he has lived in 4 countries and visited 27.

Moderator: Mark Ahlstrom, Vice President, Nextera Energy Resources

Registration Cost: FREE

Additional Information: Progress with wind power forecasting has been impressive, but there are still some situations that are challenging. In this webinar, the Southwest Power Pool will describe events that they observe with their massive wind portfolio. NOAA will then show new results from the DOE-funded “Wind Forecasting Improvement Project 2” and discuss how the latest advances in weather modeling may improve forecasts. Join us for this one-hour presentation and discussion between the developers and users of the latest weather and wind power forecasts.