WIND ENERGY IS SUPPOSED TO HELP COMBAT CLIMATE CHANGE.
BUT THE WORLD’S LARGEST TURBINE JUST GOT SWITCHED ON AND MIGHT ACTUALLY BE HEATING UP ITS SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT.
ALMOST A THIRD LARGER THAN ITS NEAREST COMPETITOR, THIS MASSIVE OFFSHORE STRUCTURE WAS INSTALLED BY CHINA IN AUGUST.
STANDING AT NEARLY 800 FEET TALL, ITS CAPABLE OF POWERING CLOSE TO 100,000 HOMES ANNUALLY.
SOME EXPERTS CLAIM THAT DUE TO ITS IMMENSE SIZE AND THE REDISTRIBUTION OF MASS IT CREATES-
THE TURBINE ACTUALLY SLOWED THE EARTH’S ROTATION DOWN BY A FEW MICROSECONDS.
JUST BY THE NATURE OF WHAT THEY DO, ALL TURBINES ALTER THE WIND FLOWS AROUND THEM-
AND STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THIS PHENOMENON CAN INCREASE GROUND TEMPERATURES.
HOWEVER, THE UNPRECEDENTED SIZE OF CHINA’S NEW TURBINE HAS SCIENTISTS CONCERNED ABOUT ITS LONG TERM EFFECTS ON THE REGION’S CLIMATE.
THEY’RE STUDYING HOW THIS TECHNOLOGY CAN INFLUENCE PRECIPITATION CYCLES AND OTHER WEATHER PATTERNS IN THE AREA.
RESEARCHERS ARE ALSO LOOKING INTO THE POTENTIAL IMPACTS ON LOCAL WILDLIFE POPULATIONS-
AS CHANGES IN AIRFLOW AND TEMPERATURE CAN AFFECT ECOSYSTEMS, INCLUDING MARINE ANIMALS AND BIRD MIGRATION.
THE RESULTS OF THESE INVESTIGATIONS MAY INFLUENCE FUTURE PLANS FOR MORE LARGE-SCALE WIND TURBINES LIKE THIS ONE.
TO GET MORE STORIES ABOUT THE UNINTENDED ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS OF RENEWABLE ENERGY-
DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP AND SIGN UP FOR ALERTS FROM ME- JACK AYLMER.
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