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I advise caution when claiming that the wind is always blowing somewhere. One does not hear a lot of discussion from the wind energy industry about the wind dro

I advise caution when claiming that the wind is always blowing somewhere. One does not hear a lot of discussion from the wind energy industry about the wind drought of 2015 in the USA and Canada. The 2015 event caused some of the lowest average wind speeds in fifty years. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2078374-mystery-wind-drought-that-cut-us-wind-power-in-2015-is-back/ https://www.newscientist.com/article/2078374-mystery-wind-dr... Climate change has proven time and again that these events will be more likely. What then?

ajross 4y ago
Uh... grid-scale failures of some kind happen in the existing fossil-based infrastructure far (far) more often than once every fifty years. That sounds like a solid numerate argument FOR wind to me.
- Arch-TK 4y ago
  Grid scale failures of some kind happen in existing fossil based infrastructure more often, but they are usually far less serious, outside of the nonsense which happened in Texas at least, you don't hear about people being without heating for weeks. If you do not have a backup for all that wind then you could have periods of weeks or months with not enough power.
  - ajross 4y ago
    > don't hear about people being without heating for weeks. The linked article doesn't substantiate "without heading for weeks" either, where are you getting that frmo? > If you do not have a backup for all that wind then you could have periods of weeks or months with not enough power. Yeah, you're just making that up. Wind shortfalls are weather events. Weather events last days, not "weeks or months". And needless to say, no one anywhere except in your head is imagining a wind-only power grid.
    - Arch-TK 4y ago
      > The linked article doesn't substantiate "without heading for weeks" either, where are you getting that frmo? The hypothetical world you are putting forward where we get most of our generation from renewables with wind being a key factor. > Weather events last days Maybe if you live under a rock. > And needless to say, no one anywhere except in your head is imagining a wind-only power grid. Plenty of people are imagining power grids which heavily rely on renewables with only short term power storage capacity to smooth out problems and almost no natural gas/nuclear based power generation capacity.
HWR_14 4y ago
Your link says that that lack of wind caused a loss of 14% of average generation (capacity +9%, generation -6%.) Overbuilding by 16% is a pretty easy task.

ajross 4y ago

Uh... grid-scale failures of some kind happen in the existing fossil-based infrastructure far (far) more often than once every fifty years. That sounds like a solid numerate argument FOR wind to me.

Arch-TK 4y ago
Grid scale failures of some kind happen in existing fossil based infrastructure more often, but they are usually far less serious, outside of the nonsense which happened in Texas at least, you don't hear about people being without heating for weeks. If you do not have a backup for all that wind then you could have periods of weeks or months with not enough power.
- ajross 4y ago
  > don't hear about people being without heating for weeks. The linked article doesn't substantiate "without heading for weeks" either, where are you getting that frmo? > If you do not have a backup for all that wind then you could have periods of weeks or months with not enough power. Yeah, you're just making that up. Wind shortfalls are weather events. Weather events last days, not "weeks or months". And needless to say, no one anywhere except in your head is imagining a wind-only power grid.
  - Arch-TK 4y ago
    > The linked article doesn't substantiate "without heading for weeks" either, where are you getting that frmo? The hypothetical world you are putting forward where we get most of our generation from renewables with wind being a key factor. > Weather events last days Maybe if you live under a rock. > And needless to say, no one anywhere except in your head is imagining a wind-only power grid. Plenty of people are imagining power grids which heavily rely on renewables with only short term power storage capacity to smooth out problems and almost no natural gas/nuclear based power generation capacity.

HWR_14 4y ago

Your link says that that lack of wind caused a loss of 14% of average generation (capacity +9%, generation -6%.) Overbuilding by 16% is a pretty easy task.