The new Italian map of extreme wind speeds

Applying and extending some previous researches, this paper proposes a map of Italian extreme winds assigning the reference velocity, i.e. the wind velocity averaged over 10 minutes, at 10 m height, in a flat open terrain, with 50 years mean return period, depending on the site and the altitude. Furthermore, an objective criterion is formulated by which the actual values of the local wind velocity are given as a function of the reference velocity. This study has been carried out for the revision of the Italian Standards dealing with safety and loads and for the introduction of the Italian wind map into Eurocode 1.