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Articles on Wind

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Wind turbines require massive structures that are polluting to produce and can harm ecosystems, but these impacts compare favorably with those of fossil alternatives. www.shutterstock.com

Does ‘green energy’ have hidden health and environmental costs?

No energy source is perfect, but solar and wind have a much lower health and environmental footprint than fossil fuels, a study finds. Biopower, though, is a mixed bag.
Do the holes in the banner carried by these Vietnam veterans during an Anzac Day parade in Canberra make any difference? AAP Image/Alan Porritt

Do wind vent holes in banners make a difference? We used a wind tunnel to find out

Attend any ANZAC Day parade and you might see people carrying banners with holes cut in them. They’re supposed to cut any drag or wind resistance but do they do any good?
Wind farms like this one probably wouldn’t exist if the government didn’t provide a hefty subsidy. Shutterstock

Congress shouldn’t revive the failed policy of subsidizing wind farms

Congress passed the wind production tax credit (PTC) more than two decades ago to spur development in an industry still in its infancy. The wind sector has since matured into adulthood, prompting thousands…
Breaking through the ice in Antarctica. Mark Brandon/Flickr

How wind helps Antarctic sea ice grow, even as the Arctic melts

Strong winds linked to climate change and the hole in the ozone layer are driving a steady increase in Antarctic sea ice, even as Arctic levels continue to shrink dramatically, a new report shows. While…
Strengthening trade winds have been linked to the stalled warming. Wikimedia Commons

Global warming stalled by strong winds driving heat into oceans

The “pause” in global warming since 2001 can be explained by the discovery of unusually strong winds in the Pacific, climatologists have found. Global surface air temperatures have more or less flatlined…
Tornadoes are common in the US Great Plains, but still devastating. Carsten Peter/EPA/World Press Photo

Explainer: why are tornadoes so destructive?

Tornadoes are a part of life for people living in the Great Plains of the United States. In Oklahoma, a state that averages 62 tornadoes a year, people are prepared as best as they can be and are well…
The Australian media might call them ‘mini-tornadoes’, but they’re just as destructive as the real thing. AAP Image/Paul Beutel

Tornadoes in Australia? They’re more common than you think

There is a long-standing myth that Australia doesn’t get tornadoes. This simply isn’t true. Just ask residents of Burnett Heads and Bargara, on Queensland’s southeast coast, or the Melburnians who were…
It’s easy to claim “wind turbine syndrome” exists, but where’s the evidence? Snurb

There’s still no evidence that wind farms harm your health

Back in July I wrote an article for the The Conversation arguing that wind turbine syndrome was a classic “communicated” disease: it spreads by being talked about, and is therefore a strong candidate for…

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