Anemometers are instruments that measure wind speed. A cup anemometer (pictured below) rotates as the wind pushes the cups. The anemometer is connected by cable to a datalogger where the electronic signal indicating rotation speed is converted to wind speed and recorded.

As part of the Hoffmaster State Park study, we measure wind speeds at five different heights above the dune surface (0.5 m, 1.0 m, 2.0 m, 4.0 m and 6.0 m). We use the collected data to calculate the wind shear velocity--a parameter commonly used to identify thresholds for sand movement and calculate amounts of sand transport by wind.

Three-cup anemometer.

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