Wind Farm

Wind Farms are not a new site for the two of us. For years we have passed or met the trucks and their pilot cars carrying blades and tower pieces through SD. We have also observed a large farm expand along I 29 as we travel back and forth to see the G'Kids. We have geocached on the county roads amongst the huge wind towers. For years my father relayed data regarding wind on the tallest hill east of our farm. So seeing a wind farm in Kansas was not a big deal, but reading the informational signs and learning a bit more about the towers was interesting. (Again, this was a stop because of geocaching, otherwise we would have driven by without noticing.)

From the time we noticed the first wind tower and until we arrived at the sign and the last towers, the distance traveled was 11 miles.

The top 20 states for Wind Energy Potential was listed on the board and the cause of an interesting discussion between the two of us. Hubby knew the #1 state before we arrived and the standing of several others. I could not/did not understand WHY he would know something so trivial and did not believe he was correct. He was. (He said he read it in the Fargo Forum about 8 years ago. Then why can't he remember what I just told him yesterday or an hour ago????)

The colors on the map show the annual energy potential measured in billions of kilo-watt hours. The lighter the color, the less the energy produced by wind. The numbers after each state are the billions of kilo-watt hours probably from the year 2000. (Maybe the standings and numbers have changed in 15 years.)

I am surprised that CA is #17 on the list. There is a HUGE wind Farm along I 10 that stretches for miles and miles! The wind towers are placed on the sides and tops of hills. The towers are also of various heights, short to super tall. (When I look at the colored map, I realize the blue area is quite small.)

Some interesting facts about the wind towers at the Gray County Wind Farm:
* Each tower is 213 feet from the ground to the hub
* Each blade is 77 feet long
* Each tower is 12 feet at the base
* The rotors move at 140 mph during typical charging
* One acre of land is needed for each tower and it's service road
* In 2002 there were 170 towers in this 'wind farm', covering 12,000 acres, but we believe there are at least twice that number today

OK. So a bit more research and more current figures shows this: (Thanks to Wikipedia)

* Texas now produces the most wind energy

* California has the largest wind farm (the one along I 10)

* The first municipal wind turbines (5 blades) were in Pettibone, ND in 1940

* The world's first wind farm was in 1980 in Crotched Mountain NH in 1980

* GE Energy is the largest producer of wind turbines

* Today the US is second to China "in installed wind capacity", BUT generates more electricity through wind power than China or Germany

* As of December 2013, the top 5 producing states are: Texas, California, Iowa, Illinois & Oregon (a lot has changed since 2000!) 

* So, Hubby wasn't right after all!

* The top 5 states according to percentage of wind are: Iowa, South Dakota, Kansas, Idaho & Minnesota

* California, Texas, Oregon & Indiana have the ten largest wind farms

* As of 2014, the wind industry in the USA is able to produce more power at lower cost by using taller wind turbines with longer blades, capturing the faster winds at higher elevations.

That is probably more than you need to know about wind energy. Interesting how much has changed in 15 years.