We Need More Science: The Hottest New Thing in Energy This Year? Wind Power

People never talk about electricity, but we’re always in the process of doing something about it—clean coal this, fracking that, solar panels the other thing. And in 2015 the hot new thing for heating (and cooling and cooking and iPhone charging) will be wind. In the US, construction of the first offshore wind farm will begin off the New England coast; globally, wind-power generating capacity is expected to be double the level of 2010. The snapshot here, taken at the start of 2014, captures the installed capacity of 18 countries. Some, particularly the UK, have taken advantage of offshore winds by placing turbines in ocean waters. And before you coastal elites get your lawn signs out and start protesting spinning gennies in your backyards: Computer simulations have shown that massive arrays of these turbines can tame hurricanes, potentially preventing billions of dollars of damage by taking the wind out of their sails before they make landfall.