ABSTRACT
The offshore wind energy has recently become a rapidly growing renewable energy resource worldwide, with several offshore wind projects in development in different planning stages [1, 2]. Despite this, a better understanding of the interaction between the MABL and the offshore wind turbines is needed in order to contribute to a better energy capture and cost-effectiveness [2]. The MABL is less studied than the planetary boundary layer (PBL) over land and some obvious reasons are the difficulties, scarcity, and costs of obtaining offshore observations. However, during the last years a great effort has been made in finding solutions [3]. For example, mesoscale meteorological models are increasingly considered lately for wind energy assessment and yield calculations. The advantage
of the mesoscale models in WRA relies on their ability to simulate with reasonable accuracy the lower parts of the boundary layer, including important atmospheric properties such as the atmospheric energy balance and stability [4]. However, the usage of any mesoscale model for wind energy applications requires a proper validation process to understand the accuracy and limitations of the model.
