LLWAS predicts wind shear around what area of airports?

The Low-Level Wind Shear Alert System (LLWAS) is designed to enhance safety during takeoffs and landings by predicting wind shear conditions that can impact aircraft performance. Wind shear is particularly dangerous in areas where aircraft are most vulnerable, which includes regions near the runway, but LLWAS monitors and predicts these variations primarily at the periphery of airports.

By focusing on the periphery, LLWAS can detect changes in wind patterns and provide alerts to pilots and air traffic controllers about potential wind shear conditions that could affect aircraft approaching or departing from the runway. This is critical as wind shear can result from various atmospheric effects such as thermal wind changes, mountain waves, and sea breezes, which are often present near the outer edges of the airport environment.

Monitoring just the runway zone or center field would not provide a complete picture of all the potential wind shear effects, as these conditions can originate and propagate from the surrounding area. The periphery serves as a buffer zone where the system captures data that is vital for the safe management of arrivals and departures influenced by changing wind conditions.