Are a logger sampling rate and its stored averaging interval the same thing?

The short answer

The sampling rate describes how often observations are taken; the stored interval describes how observations are summarized or archived. They are not the same thing. A logger can sample frequently but store only an interval mean, while another file may retain individual observations. The available evidence depends on what was actually recorded and preserved.

Request the full recording definition

Ask for sensor output characteristics, sampling cadence, stored statistics, averaging window and timestamp convention. Determine whether minimum, maximum, standard deviation and direction statistics are recorded alongside the mean. Do not assume those fields exist because the equipment is described as high speed.

A dashboard update rate is another separate quantity. A display refreshing often can show the same long-interval statistic repeatedly without adding new measurement information.

Match the statistic to the question

An annual-energy calculation, a turbulence assessment and an investigation of a brief gust require different evidence. An interval mean may be useful for one calculation while insufficient to reconstruct short events. Higher sampling cadence does not recover details that were discarded during storage.

Check the assumptions of the chosen turbine curve or model before selecting the aggregation. If changing the averaging interval alters the result materially, report that sensitivity instead of treating all archived mean speeds as interchangeable.

Preserve the limits in the handover

Include a data dictionary and one example showing how an archived row was formed. Retain the logger configuration revision and note periods when it changed. This helps distinguish a real environmental change from a change in recording method.

When the original observations are unavailable, state exactly which statistics remain. The appropriate response is to bound the supported conclusions or improve future recording. Interpolating a smooth high-frequency trace from stored means does not create measured turbulence or gust evidence for the project.