Steering wind power in a new direction

Four of the turbines on a TransAlta Renewables wind farm in Alberta, Canada, that were used for the wake-steering experiment. The truck in the lower left corner of the photo gives a sense of the wind turbines' size. (Image credit: Calgary Drone Photography) On a working wind farm, Stanford researchers have shown that angling turbines slightly away from the wind can boost energy produced overall and even out the otherwise variable supply. Sanjiva Lele, John Dabiri and Michael Howland by pointing wind turbines slightly away from the wind they could increase quantity and quality of power from wind farms. (Image credit: L.A. Cicero) Solitary wind turbines produce the most power when pointing directly into the wind. But when tightly packed lines of turbines face the wind on wind farms, wakes from upstream generators can interfere with those downstream. Like a speedboat slowed by choppy water from a boat in front, the wake from a wind turbine reduces the output of those behind it.