Wind Energy

Wind is not just uncontrollable part of nature that messes up our hair or sucks up Dorothy, Toto and anything else in its way. It can't be trained but it can be put to work. The kinetic energy of wind can be changed into other forms of energy. When a boat uses a sail to push it, that is one form of wind energy at work.

Wind is used to make electricity. Blowing wind spins the blades of a wind turbine just like when you blow on a toy pinwheel. when the blades turn, the turbine is operating and electricity is generated. The turbine has a brake, so if the wind blows too hard, the brake can stop the blades from being damaged. Some wind turbines are up to 10 stories high and have blades as long as 50 feet. Wind turbines don't create any pollution.

Wind has to blow at speed of 12 to 14 miles per hour to turn the turbines fast enough to create electricity. The turbines usually produce about 50 to 300 kilowatts of electricity (a kilowatt means 1000 watts).