Abstract
With the rapid expansion of China's wind power industry, the local climatic impacts of large-scale wind farms, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions, have attracted increasing attention. This study investigates the effects of the Huitengxile wind farm in Inner Mongolia, which hosts over 1,200 wind turbines, using high-resolution numerical simulations conducted with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. The analysis quantitatively evaluates the effects of the wind farm's influence on surface temperature, surface relative humidity, turbulent kinetic energy (TKE), and wind speed at turbine height by comparing control and sensitivity simulations. The results indicate that the Huitengxile wind farm induces a decrease in surface temperature but an increase in surface relative humidity. At hub height, TKE increases, while wind speed decreases within the wind farm area. These climatic responses exhibit seasonal and diurnal variability. In winter, the surface temperature decreases by approximately 0.5°C, wind speed reduces by 4.4 m/s, and TKE increases by 1.2 m2/s2. In contrast, summer responses are less pronounced, with surface temperature decreasing by 0.2°C, relative humidity increasing by 0.6%, wind speed reducing by 2.0 m/s, and TKE increasing by 0.7 m2/s2. Diurnal variations reveal stronger cooling, wetting, and wind speed reduction during nocturnal hours, whereas TKE enhancement is more significant during diurnal hours. Spatial analysis reveals that the wind farm's impacts are primarily confined to areas with high turbine density. These findings reveal the complex local climatic effects of large-scale wind farms, providing critical scientific insights for optimizing wind farm planning.