Wind+Energy

Table of Contents

= Wind Energy =

==Wind energy is the one of the oldest forms of energy. It was used by civilizations along the Nile River to propel boats as early as 5000 BC. In 200 BC, China was using windmills to pump water. Fast forward to 1970, the rise in oil prices created an interest in wind farms.==

[[image:Wind1.jpg width="398" height="315" align="center"]]
==Wind energy is a type of solar energy. Wind is caused by the uneven heating of the sun, the different terrain of the Earth, and the rotation of the Earth. Wind Turbines have multiple styles that involve the modern three blades that turn a motor which generates clean electricity. These systems transform the kinetic energy of the wind into electrical or mechanical energy. The two basic designs are vertical-axis and horizontal-axis. Today the most common system uses the horizontal-axis. The two styles of wind turbines today are broken down into two groups that result in facing or in downwind.The wind vane is used on the turbine to measure the direction of the wind and then relays that information back to the Yaw drive. The turbines that are downwind don't require a Yaw drive because the wind blows the rotor downwind. Though the turbines that are facing the wind will require a Yaw drive to keep the rotor facing the wind as the wind changes paths. //Most wind turbines that are used today are 1.5MW, these turbines produce 3,285,000kWh a year with a 25% capacity factor, 1.5MW X 365 days X 24 hours X 25%.// **//According to __Scientific American'__//s// April 2010 edition, in the United States 33% of Global public R&D funding went to wind technology, 19% of patents filed for wind energy technology were in the United States, and only 15% of the global market for wind energy.**==

Government Taking Action
==States are starting to think about using wind energy. Nebraska passed a Wind Energy bill this past April that allowed for the construction of two wind farms, the smaller would power roughly 6,600 homes. The federal government is also starting to think about wind energy. A bill is currently being debated in Congress that would allow the Interior Department to lease federal waters for producing energy through wind and waves. Obama said he hopes this bill will bring America's alternate energy output from 3% to 20% of America's total output by 2030. ([].)==



==Though everyone isn't happy about this. Despite its perk of being cleaner, wind turbines are still scorned by some, ironically for one of the same reasons environmentalists use against drilling in Alaska. The people are afraid the turbines will take away some of the natural beauty of their surroundings, an example is pictured below.==

==There is a facebook group called "People Against the Lake Michigan Wind Farm, " and it currently has 2,057 members. Their main issue with this offshore wind farm is that it would take away from the natural beauty of Lake Michigan. These people are frequent visitors, and residents of the area, and they don't want to see turbines tarnishing the view. Could this protesting possibly contribute to America's slow growth in alternate energy? According to nytimes.com, Denmark currently has a wind energy output of 20%. In February of 2007, the Gallup poll showed that only 3% of Americans thought that the environment/pollution should be a top priority in government, and that issue didn't even make the list for 2010. If we want more government initiative on these projects, do we have to raise public awareness first?==