A research project in California's Sierra Nevada mountains is attempting a major leap forward in unraveling the mysteries surrounding one the biggest atmospheric hazards in modern aviation -- a wind phenomenon known as a "mountain rotor." Both rotors and a related phenomenon, mountain waves, regularly form on a mountain's lee side, or on the side opposite the direction from which strong winds typically blow. Just such a site is in Owens Valley, Calif., which is between the Sierra Nevada and…
Efforts Renew to Understand Dangers of Mountain Flying
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