Exploring the Clean, Renewable Energy Resource-

Simply put, wind energy is a green energy source, which is converted into useful applications by using the wind’s powerful force to spin turbines. The earth’s surface is made up of different bodies of land and water, which cause uneven temperatures on land and in the air. During the daytime hours, air above land heats more quickly than the air over water; the warm air expands and rises. As the warm air rises, the cooler air is pulled into replace it, thus creating onshore wind gusts. At night, air is cooler over land and warmer over bodies of water which causes wind to move the opposite way (offshore). Wind energy is preferred by environmentalists as an alternative to fossil fuels, although the production of wind farms is known to have damaging effects on the environment and ecological life of the surrounding areas. There are two central designs of wind electric turbines: vertical-axis and horizontal-axis machines. Horizontal-axis wind turbines (HAWTs) are propeller shaped and more commonly used in wind energy production. They have the main rotor shaft placed at the top of a tower, pointed toward wind. Vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs) have the main rotor shaft set vertically and resemble an “egg-beater” in shape. Wind turbines are made mostly of steel, fiberglass polyester, and wood-epoxy. A singular 1 MW wind turbine set in service can generate over 3 million kWh annually… that’s enough to power over 280 homes! After more than twenty years of continual production, the new wind energy generation systems available today are highly dependable and effective.