WInd-power turbines could cause local warming

Wind power, we may have a problem. According to a study of satellite data by researchers at the State University of New York at Albany, areas around four of the world's largest wind farms are experiencing local warming trends, compared to nearby areas that don't have the farms. The temperature rise, as measured from 2003 to 2011, is 0.72 degrees Celsius per decade. The results, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, "could be due to the energy expelled by farms and the movement and turbulence generated by turbine rotors," the researchers write.

The study found that the temperatures rose more at night around the Texas-based farms. The effect was a locally defined one and limited in scope, according to the study.  Further investigation is indicated, the study's authors say, especially as in regard to wind power's effect on climate change. (Read more)