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| This is some infrared technology that Dave McCall has been utilizing to measure the canopy temperatures of our putting greens. This is number 11 green at 1:30 p.m. on August 12, 2013. The high temperature that day was 91 degrees. This picture was taken with the fan off. You can see the areas in blue are the trees/shade behind the green. This fence/tree line blocks a lot of air movement as well. The green surface temperature is anywhere between 94 and 96.5 degrees. The plotted point showing 109.1 is actually the fan itself. The metal fan obviously gets pretty warm. |
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| This infrared picture was taken at 2:35 p.m. once the fan was allowed to run for 45 minutes. With the fan on, the area of the putting green farthest from the fan has dropped 6 degrees while the ambient air temperature increased. You can see in the green colored area around the fan that those surface temperatures have dropped any where from 13 - 18 degrees. A cooler surface certainly promotes a healthier bentgrass plant that has the ability to transpire and maintain a healthy root system. Air movement is very important in our business either through tree management, fan installation, or design. |
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| This picture was taken as the fan had oscillated towards the back of the green. It shows that the area directly in front of the fan is cooled the greatest amount. This proves the importance of the oscillation. In the short amount of time that it takes for the fan to turn, the area that was 75.9 degrees has increased to 86 degrees. As the fan oscillates back and forth, it maintains a much cooler surface temperature than without. |
Many thanks to Dave for the constant support he gives our team through his research, outreach and University extension. Enjoy the warm weather and have a great holiday season.
Jordan Booth
