A first step towards a map of Italian extreme winds. Part 1: General principles and analysis methodology

The present paper is formed of two parts. In the first part a general criterion is formulated for the institution of territorial aeolic maps. This criterion is applied in the second part for drawing a preliminary map of the Italian extreme winds, the departure point for later determination of the final aeolic map. The decision to formalize the results in an intermediate phase of the work is strictly associated with the urgent need to fill a gap now clearly felt even by our colleagues from the other side of the Alps. It is hoped, moreover, that this research may stimulate debate among civil engineers on the criteria for definition of loads due to wind on the national territory. Although the study shows wide margins for improvement primarily in relation to the quantity and quality of the data utilized and to the choice of the procedures used from time to time, the authors deem that the final aeolic map should not be quantitatively very different from the preliminary map presented here. A significant exception might, however, concern the characterizing of the extreme winds in mountain zones and in the Province of Trieste. Stressed is the importance of the normative repercussions and design implications which the results of the study may carry in the national engineering sector.