windlagen

Windlagen, from Dutch wind and lagen meaning “wind layers,” is a meteorological term describing vertical stratification of wind in the atmosphere. It refers to layers where wind speed and/or direction remain relatively uniform within a height range but differ from adjacent layers, creating wind shear across the layer boundaries.

These layers occur due to temperature contrasts, pressure gradients, and stability in the atmospheric boundary layer, as well as influences from jet streams, fronts, and terrain. In stable conditions, a pronounced wind layer may form near the surface, with a different wind above an inversion, while convective mixing can erode layer boundaries.

Windlagen are measured with radiosondes, Doppler lidar, SODAR, and wind profilers, which produce vertical wind profiles. They are important for aviation safety because wind shear in layer boundaries can affect takeoff and landing, and for wind energy planning because turbine loads and power output depend on the vertical wind profile.

The concept is closely related to wind shear and the atmospheric boundary layer. Related topics include jet streams and frontal systems.