Harnessing the Wind
Wind farms, which are another form of alternative energy are becoming more common in some areas of the country. According to NASA, wind energy has the potential to provide 10 to 15 % of the world's future energy. The problem with wind farms is that they are unsightly to many people and they can kill birds. Installing the windmills can be costly at first, but once they are built the wind can be converted to electricity cheaply, assuming there is enough wind.
Lately, attention has been focused on placing more wind farms over the ocean in order to minimize some of those problems and take better advantage of the wind due to less friction.
The images below show the average wind intensity over the ocean from 2000-2007. The data was calculated by NASA scientists from the Jet Propulsion Lab using NASA's Quick Scatterometer (QuikSCAT). QuickSCAT measures wind speed and direction over the world's oceans. With this information, scientists will be better able to identify potential wind farm locations across the world.
Wind speeds obviously change with the seasons. Notice the stronger winds in the mid-latitudes occur during the colder months as the jet stream strengthens and moves toward the lower latitudes.
