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From "Facing the Wind" to "Adapting": The Survival Battle of Photovoltaic Trackers in Extreme Climates
Release time:
Dec 11,2025
With the intensification of global warming, the El Niño phenomenon poses increasingly severe challenges to photovoltaic power stations. Many unprecedented extreme climate events are now testing the limits of current industry design standards.
Contents
Chapter One: Disaster from the Skies
Chapter Two: The Downburst Eruption
Chapter Three: Sudden Wind Speed Surge
Chapter Four: Abrupt Wind Direction Shift
Chapter Five: An Industry Awakens
Chapter One: Disaster from the Skies
4:00 AM, March 17, 2025, Texas, USA. Rain had drizzled outside the window all night. Suddenly, a dazzling lightning bolt, like a sharp sword, split the pitch-black sky. Immediately after, fierce winds, akin to a wild beast breaking free from invisible shackles, roared and rampaged across the land. Strange crackling sounds that followed gradually shattered the tranquility of the small town.
"I was sound asleep when a loud noise suddenly woke me, as if someone was throwing stones at my house," said homemaker Luna during an interview, still visibly shaken. "But the stones seemed to come from all directions without any pattern. I was terrified. The horses in the stable wouldn't stop neighing. That sound was utterly unnerving."
▽ Thunderstorm weather
Dawn broke not long after, and the rain ceased. Early in the morning, veteran police officer Frank was driving on Highway 36. Normally, turning right at the upcoming intersection would lead past a photovoltaic power station. Today, however, the sight before him was chilling. A sprawling tracker system lay ahead. The originally dark-toned modules were now pockmarked with holes of various sizes, covering the panels like a scattering of snowflakes.
▽ component was smashed by hail
▽ The tracker was damaged by hail
In recent years, under the profound influence of global warming, the El Niño phenomenon has become increasingly prominent. Extreme climate events once considered rare—occurring once a century or even a millennium—are now appearing frequently. Traditional design methods often plan meticulously to ensure foolproof operation. Yet, the occurrence of extreme weather is becoming increasingly irregular and unpredictable.
▽ The tracker was damaged by a tornado
▽ Fires at photovoltaic power stations occur frequently
Among numerous extreme weather conditions, one is particularly troublesome. Its appearance is not restricted by time or geography. Like an invisible specter, it quietly shrouds areas of potential crisis, posing a significant threat to photovoltaic power stations.
Chapter Two: The Downburst Eruption
Thunderstorms are common meteorological events, typically occurring at dusk or during the night. During a thunderstorm, large amounts of water vapor often accumulate, forming a series of dynamically characterized "mobile fortresses" that move rapidly across the ground.
▽ Cloud image of thunderstorm weather
These mobile fortresses usually carry many powerful weapons. Once the conditions are right, the fortresses will launch attacks on the ground, causing severe weather phenomena such as heavy rain, hail and strong winds. The most significant impact on photovoltaic trackers is a local climate caused by thunderstorms: downburst.
▽ Downstrike burst
These mobile fortresses usually carry powerful "weapons." When conditions are right, they launch attacks on the ground, causing severe weather phenomena such as heavy rain, hail, and strong winds. The local weather condition most significantly impacting photovoltaic trackers is one caused by thunderstorms: the downburst.
A downburst is a localized, small-scale strong downdraft. When this intense airflow hits the ground, it generates destructive, straight-line winds—much like an "air bomb."
This "air bomb" threatens photovoltaic trackers primarily in two ways:
• A sudden surge in wind speed, rapidly increasing within a short period.
• An abrupt change in wind direction, shifting quickly within a brief timeframe.
Chapter Three: Sudden Wind Speed Surge
Those familiar with photovoltaic trackers know that when wind speed exceeds a certain threshold, the tracker enters stow mode (or strong wind protection mode). This mode requires the tracker to rotate to its most favorable angle and hold that position to withstand extreme winds.
From this, we can identify two key wind speed parameters for trackers:
• Operational Wind Speed: The minimum wind speed that triggers stow mode.
• Survival Wind Speed (or Extreme Wind Speed): The maximum wind speed the tracker can endure at its stow angle.
This leads to a critical question: If the tracker triggers stow mode and the wind speed continues to rise during its rotation, what impact will this have on the tracker's structure? To explore this, we need to introduce a meteorological term: "wind speed surge."
▽ Two types of downburst currents cause a sharp increase in wind speed
Microburst (Part 1)
Derecho (Part 2)
A wind speed surge—a sudden increase in wind speed over a short period—can prevent the tracker from adjusting to its stow angle in time, potentially leading to its destruction. This phenomenon is especially dangerous for single-axis trackers that utilize a "windward stow" strategy.
▽ A chart of the sharp increase in wind speed in a certain region of the Middle East over the years
(15m/s reference, 3s@10m)
The wind speed can rise from 15m/s to 33m/s at the fastest within 2 minutes
The wind speed soared to 9 meters per second per minute
For single-axis trackers, 0° (flat) is often the most unfavorable angle. The closer to 0°, the worse the tracker's stability. If a tracker is parked in a leeward position (facing away from the wind) when stow mode is triggered, it needs to rotate in the opposite direction—commonly referred to as performing a "U-turn."
This U-turn tracking inevitably causes the system to "pass through" the 0° position. As a result, the tracker becomes increasingly unstable as it rotates, and its critical wind speed (Ucr) drops further. The tracker gradually enters a "danger zone." If the wind speed surges rapidly at this moment, the so-called stow mode can turn into a "self-destruct mode," and the "U-turn" might literally mean turning over.
▽ Single-point drive "dock against the wind"
It is impossible to avoid the risks brought by the sudden increase in wind speed
The problem of wind speed surges is becoming increasingly severe, especially in Gobi Desert regions. Due to significant diurnal temperature variations, many trackers have suffered varying degrees of damage, often related to sudden wind speed increases. However, besides wind speed surges, an abrupt change in wind direction poses another latent threat.
▽ A sudden increase in wind speed caused damage to trackers in a certain area of the Middle East
Chapter Four: Abrupt Wind Direction Shift
To reduce wind load on modules and enhance structural stability, traditional photovoltaic tracking systems typically adopt a "windward stow" protection strategy—orienting the modules to face the incoming wind direction. However, wind direction is not constant. Under certain extreme weather conditions, such as during a downburst, wind direction can change suddenly. At this point, the tracker must adjust its angle immediately to prevent damage from wind hitting the back of the modules.
▽ A fast motor is adopted to reduce the rotation time of the tracker
The wind direction shift caused by a downburst is characterized by its short duration and high speed, sometimes achieving a 180-degree turn within five minutes. This means the tracker has only five minutes to complete its angle adjustment. Many tracker manufacturers have recognized this issue and adopted faster motors to increase tracker rotation speed.
▽ The wind direction changed by 180 degrees within five minutes
Unfortunately, most tracker manufacturers employ a large-angle (e.g., 60°) windward stow strategy. In the worst-case scenario, turning from 60° east to 60° west requires a rotation of 120°. Due to the rapid wind direction change, even with a fast motor, the tracker may have only about five minutes, making it difficult to reach the designated stow position in time before the wind shifts again.
To address this, some tracker manufacturers have proposed a "full-range" or "nearest stow" strategy. This means that regardless of how the wind direction changes, the tracker will stow at the maximum allowable angle closest to its current tracking position.
▽ Many tracking manufacturers had to give up docking against the wind
Change to a "large Angle without wind direction" parking strategy
The picture above: PVH
The following picture: GameChange
This design breaks from the traditional "windward docking" model because, in this case, the tracker must withstand the maximum wind speed at a leeward (or partially leeward) stow angle. This places extremely high demands on the structural reliability of the entire tracker and also severely challenges the modules' pressure-bearing capacity.
▽ The Uplift pressure of components is generally too high when it is sheltered from the wind
Chapter Five: An Industry Awakens
After the 2018 Jordan typhoon disaster, the tracker industry experienced its first major awakening. Significant financial and human resources were invested in the field of wind engineering. The importance of wind engineering became deeply ingrained. Many excellent engineers mastered substantial wind engineering knowledge, rivaling even senior scholars in the field.
Today, the damage inflicted by extreme weather on photovoltaic power stations has once again sounded the alarm for the tracker industry. Numerous projects are facing unprecedented situations. Most extreme weather conditions were not verified or analyzed during the initial design stages.
Therefore, we can predict that in the future, "atmospheric science" will become a crucial consideration in tracker design and is bound to drive the industry's second awakening.
▽ Atmospheric science is a branch of Earth science
Meanwhile, many third-party institutions have also noted the severe challenges extreme weather poses to photovoltaic mounting structures. For instance, organizations like VDE and RETC have performed notably in hail resistance research.
Take the U.S.-based independent non-profit RMI as an example. The organization has published three analytical reports on the impact of extreme weather on photovoltaic mounting systems. The reports are detailed and highly professional, providing important references for the industry.
Beyond assistance from third parties, tracker manufacturers themselves are actively exploring methods to obtain real meteorological data. By comparing and analyzing this data with wind tunnel test results, they aim to optimize tracker design and enhance resilience against extreme weather.
▽ NREL Flatirons Campus
The outdoor wind farm test base of NX and ATI
▽ The Puertollano Integrated Microgrid Project in Spain
Arctech Outdoor Wind Farm Test Base
The photovoltaic tracker industry has stumbled forward, encountering numerous difficulties and challenges. Extreme climate phenomena are indeed formidable, but not insurmountable. However, as we stand at the crossroads of industry transformation, an even greater crisis looms quietly.
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