Wind energy can provide not only the current needs of mankind in electricity generation, but also future in unlimited quantity. But there are many but. And experts believe that they are mostly not in geophysical reasons, and in the technological, political, and economic.

About it in his interview published in the September issue of Nature Climate Change, said Ken Caldeira, a researcher from the Carnegie Institution for science. According to his calculations, the total amount of energy that can be obtained already using wind, will completely satisfy the energy needs of all mankind today, and not only.

Mr. Caldeira explains that in the higher strata of the atmosphere, the wind is constant and faster, making turbines installed in these layers is more advantageous in comparison with terrestrial and marine turbines same purpose. A new study by Ken Caldeira touches on the question about the changes in our climate that may result from the installation of such turbines.

A team of scientists of the Carnegie Institution for science has calculated the amount of energy that can be obtained with the help of atmospheric and surface winds. For this have been given to determine winds. So surface winds are the ones that can get turbines, podpirajuschaja towers on the water or on land. And naturally are, accordingly, those who respond only United technologies turbines with kites. And it should be noted that this study was subjected to evaluation only geophysical constraints, not taking into account technical and economic factors.

Models that are specifically for research have been created by scientists, made it possible to calculate the amount of energy that can produce a surface and atmospheric winds. So, the first can bring to humanity 400 terawatts of energy, and the second in four and a half times more, i.e. more than 1800 terawatts! And modern civilization only consumed about 18 terawatts of electricity. And it turns out that surface winds can provide for our use twenty times more electricity than necessary, and turbine with "vozdukhoplavanie" technologies have the potential to harvest energy in 100 times the amount of current needs.

And now about climate impacts. If the collection of wind energy will reach maximum results, the consequences of these will be for the Earth is very significant. But all the same study showed that the collection of wind energy by the amount not exceeding the current needs of our planet, a major impact on the climate will not have. And even more, if that's right, that is evenly to place turbines, and not to focus them in several regions.

Changes in surface temperatures in the collection of energy in a number of today's global needs will be 0.1 degree Celsius, and rainfall will change to 1%. That is to say that, overall, the impact on the Earth's ecosystems is negligible.

So what in this case is an obstacle to such a wonderful solution of energy problems of the Earth? The answer is more than banal and he is in the question: can those who now owns the primary sources of energy to turn away from matters of personal gain in favor care about the future of the Earth? Because wind energy can make our planet cleaner and save it for posterity.