Wind+Power

====** __Wind Power: Blowing Away The World__ ** //By Caroline Kuldell// ====

Some Wind Turbines

**Related Vocabulary [1] **
 *  Generator - This machine is inside a wind turbine and is powered by the rotating blades. Like a turbine, it generates electricity.


 *  Wind Shaft - The axle that the blades of a wind turbine turn on.


 *  Horizontal-axis - In this type of wind turbine, the Wind Shaft is horizontal and the blades are perpendicular to the ground. They look like modern windmills.


 *  Vertical-axis -In this type of wind turbine, the wind shaft is vertical and the blades are parallel to the ground. This new type of wind turbine is becoming more and more popular.


 *  Wind Farm - A group of wind turbines all sending electricity to the same place. Most of the world's wind turbines are part of a wind farm.


 *  Kinetic Energy - When the blades of a wind turbine turn, they have kinetic energy and that is what is used to power the generator and create electricity.

 Offshore Wind Turbines

**Steps to Accomplish Wind Power [1] **
 **Conservation of Energy Throughout the Steps**
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">Wind pushes the blades of a turbine.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">The blades spin a shaft that leads to a generator.
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">The spinning shaft powers the generator.
 * 4) <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">The generator makes electricity.
 * 5) <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">The electricity is sent down the tower to wherever it is going.

In step 1, the kinetic energy of the wind is being transferred to the blades of the turbine. In step 2, the kinetic energy of the blades is being transferred to the shaft. Also, in step 3, the kinetic energy of the shaft is being transformed into mechanical energy to power the generator. Finally, in step 4, the mechanical energy is being transformed into electrical energy.

media type="youtube" key="eXejxcW-XGo" height="405" width="500" align="center" How a wind turbine works. It illustrates the steps to accomplish it. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> **Advantages of Wind Power** **[2]**

Some advantages of wind power are that it's renewable. So long as the sun is shining, the wind will never stop blowing, so there is an endless supply of wind power. Secondly, since wind power does not require the burning of fossil fuels and does not need to be mined or transported anywhere, there is no pollution of the atmosphere. Also, fossil fuels aren't in every country, so some countries are dependent on others for their fuel. Every country has wind, so wind power would reduce dependency and possibly prevent wars over fossil fuels. Finally, with more wind farms, more jobs would be created, like maintenance workers and engineers.


 * Disadvantages of Wind Power [2] **

Despite the many advantages of wind power, some people are still against it. Some of their reasons are that it's unsightly, and they think that when wind turbines are installed near their houses, their property value will go down. However, there are more wind turbines being installed offshore, away from where people can see, and most other wind farms are away from populated areas. People also complain that wind turbines are too noisy, but modern designs make no more noise that a refrigerator. Others have said that wind turbines are dangerous to birds. It is true that many birds have been killed from not being able to see the rotating blades, but new vertical-axis turbines minimize this problem. Also, offshore wind farms have been dangerous to ships because they interfere with radar, (which also causes a problem for the Air Force) but warning markers are being placed well in advance. A new pressing issue is the problem of a condition that is called Wind Turbine Syndrome. A few people living near wind turbines have suffered headaches, fevers and other symptoms when they moved away from the wind turbines, but this condition is rare.

media type="youtube" key="fNudnI5tzf8" height="405" width="500" align="center" <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 80%; text-align: center;">This shows a new design of vertical-axis wind turbine that could minimize some of the flaws in the older horizontal-axis turbines, and could be accessible for homeowners.

**<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">News Article ** <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> http://journalstar.com/business/local/article_ba8bf8dc-4356-11df-92b1-001cc4c03286.html

This article explains how the wind industry is still going strong, even though the economy is suffering. Wind power is going up in the world and with all it's growth, could really become the next big energy source. It seems as though the best is yet to come!

Resources: [1] - Morris, Neil. __Wind Power.__ China: Smart Apple Media, 2007.

[2] - Parks J, Peggy. __Wind Power.__ San Diego CA: Reference Point Press, 2010.

[3] - Layton, Julia. __How Wind Power Works.__ How Stuff Works. Apr 8 2010. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/wind-power.htm>