Multi-Rotor UAV Observations of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer over Complex Terrain: Accuracy Validation and Dynamic Mechanisms of Flight Disturbances

作者：Rongfang Yang, Deli Meng, Guanglei Zhang, Lihui Liu, Guocui Li, Z. Zhang, Jianping Guo · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.5194/egusphere-2026-4218 · 研究领域：Meteorological Phenomena and Simulations、Aerospace and Aviation Technology、Fluid Dynamics and Turbulent Flows

Abstract. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based sounding has become a flexible and cost-effective approach for probing the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), yet its measurement credibility over complex terrain and the dynamic response of UAV flight attitude to boundary-layer dynamics remain insufficiently quantified. Here, we implement multi-rotor UAV field campaigns equipped with well-calibrated meteorological payloads, including co-located intercomparison observations against a 100-m gradient meteorological tower at the Xingtai Field Scientific Experiment Base, and vertical-profile surveys across the lower ABL over the eastern Taihang piedmont. The comparative observations demonstrate excellent agreement between UAV and tower measurements: vertical profiles of wind speed, wind direction, air temperature, and relative humidity exhibit strong correlations, negligible systematic biases, and coherent vertical structures. Stability parameters derived from high-frequency hovering observations, including potential temperature and gradient Richardson number (Ri), also closely match tower references, verifying the platform’s capability to reliably resolve ABL thermal stratification and dynamic stability. Three successive evening soundings capturing the transition from a convective to a stable boundary layer reveal that UAV attitude disturbances are strongly suppressed within stably stratified layers, but markedly amplified in near-neutral to weakly unstable layers where intense vertic...