Extreme Weather Effects on Transmission Grids and the Potential of the Utilization of Real Time Monitoring for Smart Grids Applications

Extreme weather events are increasing and becoming more frequent because of global warming and hence the exposure of transmission lines can have detrimental effects on our modern power systems. The power systems and especially transmission lines were designed for expected weather conditions and the rapid change in weather is putting a real strain on the transmission line grid. The transmission lines have not changed fundamentally in the last 100 years, and they have not been considered when it comes to advancements in technology over the last few decades. There are no common practices in monitoring transmission lines, but recent advancement has finally made real time monitoring a financially reasonable decision. This paper will review different extreme weather events and how they can affect transmission lines and how the real time monitoring of these effects could be utilized for smart grid applications in transmission grids.