| Wind Watch is a registered educational charity, founded in 2005. |
Wind turbines produce small effect on field temperatures
Credit: By Sarah Boden | Iowa Public Radio | December 12, 2016 | iowapublicradio.org ~~
Translate: FROM English | TO English
Translate: FROM English | TO English
Wind turbines cover rural Iowa, offering corn and soybean farmers an additional source of income. But how do those giant spinning blades affect crops?
So far Agronomist Gene Takle of Iowa State University says his multiple studies haven’t found that turbines effect crop yield. But that doesn’t mean they don’t impact the conditions on a field.
In a recent study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Takle documented that the temperature around two turbines dropped by as much as a degree when they were powered down for a little over an hour for nighttime maintenance.
“The motions of the air over the blades create turbulence, and the turbulence spreads in a wake downwind of the turbine,” he says.
And this wake creates a drying effect, which is warming. Hence the reason that when the turbines are off at night, it’s slightly cooler.
Takle adds turbines may also have minor effects on moisture and carbon dioxide levels.
This article is the work of the source indicated. Any opinions expressed in it are not necessarily those of National Wind Watch.
The copyright of this article resides with the author or publisher indicated. As part of its noncommercial educational effort to present the environmental, social, scientific, and economic issues of large-scale wind power development to a global audience seeking such information, National Wind Watch endeavors to observe “fair use” as provided for in section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law and similar “fair dealing” provisions of the copyright laws of other nations. Send requests to excerpt, general inquiries, and comments via e-mail.
| Wind Watch relies entirely on User Contributions |
 (via Stripe) |
 (via Paypal) |
Share:
[ Short URL: https://wind-watch.org/news/?p=80648 ]
