Wind Power For Dummies

The motion of gases on a large scale is called wind. Wind plays a very important role in the earth’s atmosphere. Wind is formed due to the uneven heating of earth’s surface. The surface of the earth consists of different types of land so heat absorption varies from one place to the other. General classification of wind is done based on its speed, spatial scale, cause for the force types, regions of occurrence and their effects. The meteorological department classifies wind according to their strength and direction. For example, Gusts are high speed winds that occur for a short period of time, strong winds with medium duration are called squalls. Long duration winds are called breeze, gale, storm, typhoons and hurricanes.
Strong winds can blow off trees houses and can even take away a person’s life. Landforms are formed due to strong wind through the Aeolian process. Winds also disperse seeds from one plant to the other which helps in survival of the plant species. Wind formation in the rough terrains is associated with regional names due to their substantial effects on the region. Wildfires that occur in mountains are spread to a large area because of the winds. Wind power is mainly used for generating electricity. It is a renewable energy because the wind will blow as long as the sun shines.
Windmills are used for generating electricity from the wind. Wind energy is used as a power resource in most countries. Wind is also said to be a clean fuel as it does not produce any water or air pollution. In the old days, people built wind mills to grind grains, pump water and for cutting wood. The early wind mills resembled large paddle wheels. In recent times, wind turbines are being used for generating electricity. Wind turbines have three large blades which collect the kinetic energy from the wind, which is then converted into electrical energy with the use of an electric generator.
The working of a wind turbine is very simple. The wind flows over the blades causing them to move in a particular direction. The blades are connected to a drive shaft that comes in contact with the electric generator to produce electricity. One disadvantage of wind turbines is that they have a negative effect on bird population.