Wind turbines create "wakes" of slowed air that reduce power for nearby turbines. To help improve wind energy models, we analyzed data from a large field experiment. We focused on a single day with changing weather patterns. We found that even simple terrain features interacted with the wind to create large variations in power output – up to 80 % – across a wind farm. This detailed dataset provides a real-world case needed to validate and improve wind energy design tools.
Wind turbines create "wakes" of slowed air that reduce power for nearby turbines. To help...