The effects of wind are crucial to the safety and cost of structures.
The wind climate of Europe and many other parts of the world is dominated by synoptic extratropical cyclones and mesoscale storm outflows. Thunderstorms are frequent events that often generate wind speeds higher than those associated with cyclones. Despite a considerable amount of research, there is still no model for thunderstorm outflows and their effects on structures comparable to that available for cyclones. Consequently, the effects of thunderstorms on structures are still determined using the cyclonic model developed half a century ago, and engineering practice often results in structures that are either insufficiently safe or excessively costly. This is because the complexity of thunderstorms makes it difficult to develop models that are both realistic and simple. Their short duration and limited spatial extent mean that available data are very scarce. Furthermore, there is a significant gap between research in wind engineering and that in atmospheric sciences.

The creation of an unprecedented wind monitoring network, the role of the Principal Investigator (PI) and their innovative vision, the presence of a project manager who is an expert in wind engineering and possesses interdisciplinary expertise in atmospheric sciences, the ability to simulate large-scale storms in a new, one-of-a-kind laboratory, recent advances in CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulations, the success and synergy of previous and ongoing projects, as well as the support of a host institution of excellence, represent extraordinary conditions for overcoming these limitations.

THUNDERR stands for THUNDERstorm and evokes the revolutionary nature and innovative ‘roar’ of this project. The aim is to obtain new measurements of thunderstorms, create a vast database of field-collected data and a new interpretation of the relevant meteorological scenarios, conduct unique wind tunnel tests and CFD analyses, formulate a physically accurate thunderstorm model suitable for the development of a load scheme that is easily transferable toengineering and technical standardisation, radically transform the current formulation of wind loads and engineering practice, and design safer and more cost-effective structures, thereby generating a profound social and economic impact.