A mathematical examination of the press model for atmospheric turbulence

Abstract

The random process used to model atmospheric turbulence in aircraft response problems is examined. The first, second, and higher order probability density and characteristic functions were developed. The concepts of the Press model lead to an approximate procedure for the analysis of the response of linear dynamic systems to a class of non-Gaussian random processes. The Press model accounts for both the Gaussian and non-Gaussian forms of measured turbulence data. The nonstationary aspects of measured data are explicitly described by the transition properties of the random process. The effects of the distribution of the intensity process upon calculated exceedances are examined. It is concluded that the press model with a Gaussian intensity distribution gives a conservative prediction of limit load values