Wind Farms Increase Local Temperatures

In west-central Texas, land-surface temperatures have warmed by 1.3 degrees F per decade in the vicinity of large wind farms, according to a new study in Nature Climate Change. This region contains four of the world’s largest wind farms. By analyzing satellite data in this region from 2003 to 2011, the authors detected a significant warming trend—particularly at night—compared to nearby regions containing no wind farms. The lead author explained in Science Daily that these findings emphasize the need to better understand the complex processes involved with wind farms in order to predict their effects on weather and climate.