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Night-Warming Effect Found Over Large Wind Farms in Texas
ScienceDaily ^ | Apr. 30, 2012 | NA

Posted on 05/02/2012 1:24:58 PM PDT by neverdem

Large wind farms in certain areas in the United States appear to affect local land surface temperatures, according to a paper published April 30 in the journal Nature Climate Change.

The study, led by Liming Zhou, an atmospheric scientist at the State University of New York- (SUNY) Albany, provides insights about the possible effects of wind farms...

The results could be important for developing efficient adaptation and management strategies to ensure long-term sustainability of wind power.

"This study indicates that land surface temperatures have warmed in the vicinity of large wind farms in west-central Texas, especially at night," says Anjuli Bamzai, program director in the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences, which funded the research.

"The observations and analyses are for a relatively short period, but raise important issues that deserve attention as we move toward an era of rapid growth in wind farms in our quest for alternate energy sources."

Considerable research has linked the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels with rising global temperatures.

Consequently, many nations are moving toward cleaner sources of renewable energy such as wind turbines. Generating wind power creates no emissions, uses no water and is likely "green."

"We need to better understand the system with observations, and better describe and model the complex processes involved, to predict how wind farms may affect future weather and climate," said Zhou.

There have been a growing number of studies of wind farm effects on weather and climate, primarily using numerical models due to the lack of observations over wind farms.

As numerical models are computationally intensive and have uncertainties in simulating regional and local weather and climate, said Zhou, remote sensing is likely the most efficient and effective way to study wind farm effects over larger spatial and longer temporal scales.

(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: climatechange; globalwarming; globalwarminghoax; greenenergy; wind; windfarms
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To: Hodar
.... maybe if we build these huge fans behind the windmills, we can get the air moving again and cool things back down < /sarcasm>

Here's my theory: the fans are slowing down the breeze, which would otherwise cool things off, sort of like driving around in your pickup with the windows up.

Since it's hot as hell there anyway, why not build more windmills--enough to generate heat enough to boil water and spin turbines.

Think about it: if too much of a good thing is bad, then maybe too much of a bad thing is really good. I should remember this next time my wife....

21 posted on 05/02/2012 2:11:23 PM PDT by tsomer
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To: neverdem
Weird weather patterns lately.

Instead of the typical east moving gulf rains they have been mostly north moving. Weird.

22 posted on 05/02/2012 2:14:25 PM PDT by rawcatslyentist ("Behold, I am against you, O arrogant one," Jeremiah 50:31)
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To: InterceptPoint
Even if you are worried about Global Warming this is a gnat on an elephant kind of problem.

Not if you live near the wind farms. And there are numerous other effects that slowing the wind will have on the atmospheric climate. Warming the area under the slowed winds is just the first observation. This study illustrates just how absolutely clueless the AGW crowd is.

23 posted on 05/02/2012 2:15:03 PM PDT by justa-hairyape
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To: Izzy Dunne
"Look, all you have to do is use some of the electricity that the windmills generate to power a fan to blow on them! That'll cool them off, and generate more wind, to boot!"

Nah.Use the wind power to generate a freezer which would create ice cubes or blocks which would then be placed in front of said windmills and would thus generate cooler air and in turn would thus cool the surrounding climate. Any wind power residue would hence be set forth for the private usage of over taxed sweating peasants at a higher fee whose cost would maintain the running of said windmills under the guise of saving the planet at whatever the cost would be. Mother Nature thanks you. Whoever and wherever she may be.

24 posted on 05/02/2012 2:15:19 PM PDT by 1_Rain_Drop
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To: tsomer
Here's my theory: the fans are slowing down the breeze, which would otherwise cool things off,

In West-Central Texas, a significant part of the time is spent with the air temperature hotter than the ground temp.

Have you ever felt 100°F wind?

25 posted on 05/02/2012 2:17:06 PM PDT by thackney (life is fragile, handle with prayer)
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To: neverdem

I believe it is because of the huge concrete footprint they have to install for these over sized POS!


26 posted on 05/02/2012 2:17:11 PM PDT by Red_Devil 232 (VietVet - USMC All Ready On The Right? All Ready On The Left? All Ready On The Firing Line!)
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To: alancarp
The only thing that wind farms do is perhaps stir up the air that's already present.

They slow the wind. Energy is transferred from the wind to the blades. The turbulence is caused by the method they use to slow the wind. But slowing the wind caused the heat rise. They just did not quantify the observation correctly.

27 posted on 05/02/2012 2:18:52 PM PDT by justa-hairyape
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To: neverdem

How ironic, the very thing they would tout to help against global warming probably contributes to it. Don Quixote has nothing on these enviro-clowns.


28 posted on 05/02/2012 2:19:57 PM PDT by Brett66 (Where government advances, and it advances relentlessly , freedom is imperiled -Janice Rogers Brown)
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To: Kartographer
So Wind Farms = GLOBAL WARMING!!!! Who would have thunk that?

Friction. Who couldn't have thunk it. Wind turns the prop. Prop turns the generator. wind kenetic energy is transformed to rotational kenetic energy, heat, and electricity. The heat goes back to the atmosphere. Where was the environmental impact study? Broomed by the lunatics at EPA I bet.

29 posted on 05/02/2012 2:47:25 PM PDT by LoneRangerMassachusetts (The meek shall not inherit the Earth)
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To: Kartographer
So Wind Farms = GLOBAL WARMING!!!! Who would have thunk that?

Friction. Who couldn't have thunk it. Wind turns the prop. Prop turns the generator. wind kenetic energy is transformed to rotational kenetic energy, heat, and electricity. The heat goes back to the atmosphere. Where was the environmental impact study? Broomed by the lunatics at EPA I bet.

30 posted on 05/02/2012 2:47:33 PM PDT by LoneRangerMassachusetts (The meek shall not inherit the Earth)
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To: thackney
I think the larger effect is from slowing down the heat transfer effect of the wind. The ground heats up and there is less wind volume to transport the heat elsewhere. The wind coming down from the western mountains or off the gulf should carry some heat away.

In either case, just another example of how government subsidized efforts are seldom thought through.

31 posted on 05/02/2012 3:17:03 PM PDT by slowhandluke (It's hard to be cynical enough in this age.)
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To: slowhandluke

A second thought - would creating new hot spots on the Texas plains create more tornadoes?


32 posted on 05/02/2012 3:21:21 PM PDT by slowhandluke (It's hard to be cynical enough in this age.)
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To: wardaddy; Joe Brower; Cannoneer No. 4; Criminal Number 18F; Dan from Michigan; Eaker; Jeff Head; ...
Big Solar threatens existence of rare desert tortoise

An invisible menace for solar cells

GOP money floods battlegrounds, threatens Dems' hold on Senate

Obama's Nakba (Catastrophe)

Some noteworthy articles about politics, foreign or military affairs, IMHO, FReepmail me if you want on or off my list.

33 posted on 05/02/2012 3:46:42 PM PDT by neverdem (Xin loi minh oi)
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To: neverdem
"Our results show a significant warming trend of up to 0.72 °C per decade, particularly at night-time, over wind farms relative to nearby non-wind-farm regions. We attribute this warming primarily to wind farms as its spatial pattern and magnitude couples very well with the geographic distribution of wind turbines.

Wow, that's a big number! Cooling winds slowing at night has a possible effect, but I would expect it to be barely measurable. Then again, what does "0.72C per decade " mean???

34 posted on 05/02/2012 5:02:58 PM PDT by cookcounty (We need Newt. The Black Belt Jaw-jitsu Master!)
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To: neverdem

Wind Turbines
Chevy Volt
Mercury Lightbulbs
Solandra (& 20 simular Co.)

I think the progressives have taught us a very expensive lesson about the new green economy and socialism.


35 posted on 05/02/2012 6:32:32 PM PDT by Leep (Enemy of the Statist)
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To: neverdem

Wind gennies work by slowing down the wind. Less wind, due to the energy extracted to turn the things. Less wind, = warmer, esp at night?


36 posted on 05/02/2012 7:02:06 PM PDT by Travis McGee (www.EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: neverdem
... primarily using numerical models ...

What do you want the result to be? I could write a 'numerical model' to give any result you desire.

The entire Global Warming scam is based on biased 'Numerical Models.'

I want empirical measurements.

This is just another PhD candidate looking for a published paper for some creds.

Anyone with a hand held calculator can figure out that wind farms are BS based on empirical economic reality. Too expensive and too unreliable.

37 posted on 05/02/2012 7:36:27 PM PDT by Ditto (Nov 2, 2010 -- Partial cleaning accomplished. More trash to remove in 2012)
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To: neverdem

Thanks for the ping!


38 posted on 05/02/2012 7:57:42 PM PDT by Alamo-Girl
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To: neverdem

So whats a good Libral to do?!!!


39 posted on 05/02/2012 7:59:06 PM PDT by mo (If you understand, no explanation is needed. If you don't understand, no explanation is possible.)
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