Large offshore wind turbine arrays may help protect vulnerable coastal areas from the worst impacts of landfalling hurricanes, according to a new study, in addition to producing renewable energy.
The research, published on Wednesday in the journal Nature Climate Change, found that large turbine arrays producing at least 300 gigawatts of electricity — far more than any offshore wind project in service today worldwide — can significantly reduce a hurricane’s maximum surface winds as well as its deadly storm surge.
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The study, from researchers at Stanford University and the University of Delaware, showed that if a large offshore wind turbine array had been in place off the southeast coast of New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina came ashore in 2005, it would have slashed the storm’s wind speeds by up to 79 mph at 15 feet above the surface in a region downwind from the turbines. It also would have reduced the maximum storm surge by up to 80% Read more…
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