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A friend told me there is a newer mesoscale study out there, but I haven't seen it yet. Conclusion, as I understand it, is little to no effect even if massive development occurs; turbines just don't compare to geologic and biologic structure that affects wind flow.
Here is what I have on file: Can large wind farms affect local meteorology? S. Baidya Roy and S. W. Pacala Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA R. L. Walko Department of Civil Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA Received 11 March 2004; revised 9 July 2004; accepted 20 July 2004; published 1 October 2004. <1> The RAMS model was used to explore the possible impacts of a large wind farm in the Great Plains region on the local meteorology over synoptic timescales under typical summertime conditions. A wind turbine was approximated as a sink of energy and source of turbulence. The wind farm was created by assuming an array of such turbines. Results show that the wind farm significantly slows down the wind at the turbine hub-height level. Additionally, turbulence generated by rotors create eddies that can enhance vertical mixing of momentum, heat, and scalars, usually leading to a warming and drying of the surface air and reduced surface sensible heat flux. This effect is most intense in the early morning hours when the boundary layer is stably stratified and the hub-height level wind speed is the strongest due to the nocturnal low-level jet. The impact on evapotranspiration is small. INDEX TERMS: 3307 Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics: Boundary layer processes; 3329 Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics: Mesoscale meteorology; 3379 Meteorology and Atmospheric Dynamics: Turbulence; 1630 Global Change: Impact phenomena; KEYWORDS: wind power, wind farm, renewable energy, environmental impact, climate, weather Citation: Baidya Roy, S., S. W. Pacala, and R. L. Walko (2004), Can large wind farms affect local meteorology?, J. Geophys. Res., 109, D19101, doi:10.1029/2004JD004763. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 109, D19101, doi:10.1029/2004JD004763, 2004
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