Monitoring Weather Data Critical for Electrical Substation Management

The Imperial Irrigation District in Southern California installed an Orion™ Weather Station at a remote substation that is regularly impacted by wind storms, flash floods, and extreme summer temperatures.

Bethany Villero visited the site on a recent trip and spoke with IID Communications & Control Technician Mizael Huereque, who explained how engineers utilize on-site weather data for critical substation operations. These reasons include:

  • Preparing to supply power from secondary substations to sustain increased load by monitoring high temperatures in the summer months.

  • Anticipating and preparing for fallen trees and power lines by monitoring wind speeds during storms.

  • Adjusting transmission line ratings for efficiency and equipment damage mitigation by factoring temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation data.
Orion™ Weather Station with solar radiation sensor.



Downed power lines. (Photo courtesy of Imperial Irrigation District)

An IID crew replaces transmission lines damaged by recent storms.
(Photo courtesy of Imperial Irrigation District)

Location: Mecca, CA 92254, USA

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