After marvelling at the progress in solar power last week, I think it is time for a wind power update. It is still there (wind power). It is still the cheapest form of alternative energy. Nothing new. The amount of wind energy produced climbs with the erection of each new mega-turbine.

The downsides to wind energy/turbines remain the same. Noisy. Kills flying animals. Disrupts the local weather (in the case of large wind farms). Ruins the beauty of the natural landscape. And now we can add one more downside risk for ocean based turbines – hurricanes. A recent study found that many ocean-based wind turbines would be destroyed by hurricanes during their 20 year lifetime. This should certainly factor into the lifetime cost of ocean-based wind farms – making them a little more expensive than what is currently estimated. Another part of the cost of wind turbines that not too many people seem to mention is de-commissioning cost.  Whether whacked by a hurricane or just worn out from a normal life-cycle (about 20 years), how much will it cost to take the turbines down? What about the huge blocks of cement left in the earth? Before we cover too much more of the earth with these huge turbines, maybe we should consider some of the lifetime costs.

Overall, I still support wind energy in general, but it is definitely not a panacea. It will not be too much longer before we reach the point of diminishing returns with wind turbines. Already, the average wind speed around the globe is decreasing. While it would take at least a doubling or tripling of current installation numbers to have a dramatic effect, each new turbine takes a little more momentum out of the air.

New Nuke Plant Construction

So maybe nuclear power is a better option? It could be, but there are safety concerns. Plus the production of nuclear fuel is still highly dependent on the availability of cheap fossil fuel energy, and Peak Oil is having an effect on prices, even if it hasn’t caused a total collapse of society. In any case, amazingly, the U.S. has approved the construction of 2 new nuclear reactors in Georgia. These new “third-generation” reactors are supposed to be safer than the one that melted down in Fukushima last year. But don’t expect these to come online until around 2020 or so. Just because they have been approved doesn’t mean they will not have to jump through another million bureaucratic hoops before the construction is finished.

And if you follow the cold fusion story, which I suppose is a future energy wild card, even if the chances it is real or economically viable are quite small, here is a recent video from NASA explaining a possible new cold fusion method. The video is scant on details. Is it just theory? Do they have a good grasp on what they are talking about? Is a super clean energy future right around the corner? I doubt it, but I am willing to learn more.

In the cold fusion realm, I have been following the Rossi E-cat story. Rossi is an Italian scientist that claims to have created a cold fusion machine (the E-cat) and is trying to sell it to different power companies around the world. Many people think it is a fraud. He has held demonstrations to convert skeptics but won’t allow anyone to “look under the hood”. Suspicious? Definitely. I hope it really works, but some other people and potential investors are starting to cry foul.

Have a good Monday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under Alternative Energy

Just a little update on the snowfall for today. Due to the unfrozen ground, a lot of the snow is melting as it falls. Snow was falling from 7:00 to 9:30am here in Wausau before anything began to stick on the grass. I still expect to reach one inch of snow accumulation in Wausau, and thus we should have winners in our First Snowfall contest. If today ends up being the winning date in the snowfall contest, then we will have a drawing for the top 4 prizes during Wake-Up Wisconsin on Friday morning.

A more difficult question is whether we will end up breaking the record snow fall here in Wausau for November 9th. The record is 3.0 inches set in 1896 and again in 1948. I think it will be close, but based on current trends on the radar and model projections, we might fall just a little short.

In any case, there are many locations in the viewing area that have had more accumulation at the time of this writing. You can check out some of the viewer photographs here. Up to 3 inches has been reported in grassy areas. So many locations will end up with the forecast 4 to 6 inches. Be careful on the roadways. Thankfully the snow should be winding down during the 3pm to 5pm time frame, so hopefully the afternoon commute will not be to treacherous.

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An update on the most recent cold fusion story out of Italy (check yesterday’s blog post for more). The inventor of the latest cold fusion device (named the “E-cat”), Andrea Rossi, claims to have sold 3 units thus far. The people or companies who ordered the units have thus far remained anonymous. I (and Rossi) have said from the beginning that the market will be the ultimate decider of hope vs. hoax. Now that the device is being used outside of Rossi’s control, we should get validation. I am still more of a skeptic than believer. If there is some strange nuclear reaction going on, and it produces electricity at a competitve cost, then Rossi will be rich and the world’s energy problems will be solved. I do not exaggerate.

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Another story that I have been following that has reached a happy conclusion, is the Mars 500 experiment. This was a mock mission to Mars, where 6 astronauts were locked up in a mock space ship for 520 days – the amount of time it would take for a real trip using today’s technology. Here is an article where they share their thoughts about the mission.

Have a good Wednesday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under First Snowfall 2011, Space, Technology, Winter Weather

I hope everyone made it through the illogical and archaic clock change from this past weekend without much trouble. One thing that is common for people to associate with the clock change is the onset of Winter. November is officially a Fall month and it is not too often that we have major storms or cold during the month, however, when the sun starts setting before 5pm, everyone starts to think a little more about Winter.

It just so happens that this week IS Winter Weather Awareness Week in Wisconsin AND we could end up with our first significant snow of the season, so that old association with Winter and the clock change fits fairly well in 2011.

I will provide more Winter Weather safety facts and tips throughout the work week but for today I am just going to provide the one tip you should heed most closely, SLOW DOWN!! As is the case with flash flooding, most Winter Weather deaths in the modern day occur on the roadways. Hypothermia and heart attacks are concerns, but nothing is as dangerous as the roadways during the Winter. That is where almost ALL the trouble is and is where you should focus most of your attention during the Winter. On any day when precipitation is expected during the Winter be sure to leave early for work or school and drive slowly. Don’t be in a rush because you could end up dead. Cars are dangerous – especially in the Winter.

So when could we end up with snow this week? It looks like the first band of mixed precipitation will be moving through Northcentral Wisconsin late tonight or (more likely) on Tuesday morning. Right now, it looks like temps will be warm enough to prevent significant snowfall, however, there could be up to an inch accumulation in some spots. A higher chance for accumulating snow will be Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. It is during this time frame that a couple of inches of slushy snow could accumulate around central Wisconsin and 3 to 6 inches could fall in the far northwest part of the viewing area. By far northwest, I am talking about cities such as Ogema, Phillips, Park Falls, Mercer, Minocqua, and Manitowish Waters.

Snow amounts are still very preliminary and it will be tough to get accurate measurement when the time comes because temps will be above freezing and the ground is not frozen yet. So, it could snow 6 inches in the north but it might only look like 2 or 3 inches after a few hours because it will be melting from the top and the bottom.

Will there be an inch in Wausau? I think the odds are greater than 50% that we could end up with an inch. If so, we could have our winners for the First Snowfall Contest. If an inch falls on either Tuesday or Wednesday of this week, then we will probably hold the drawing for the top 4 prize winners on Friday of this week on Wake-Up Wisconsin. As far as our circle of Channel 9 personalities and media friends goes (people who are not eligible for the prizes), it looks like Tony Schumacher has a good shot of winning, since he picked November 8th and would be the closest.

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One important update I wanted to pass along about an energy issue that I blog about from time-to-time is cold fusion. As you know, I am fairly skeptical that this type of fusion reaction can occur or be commercialized, but I always keep my mind open and hopes up. Cold fusion is a theorized reaction where fusion occurs by electro-chemical means at lower temperatures than nuclear fusion is commonly known to occur. If it was a process that could be contained and used to produce electricity, it would revolutionize the world. The problems is that the many experiments that have purported to show cold fusion to be true, are very hard or impossible to reproduce on a consistent basis (otherwise we would already be swimming in a world of nearly free energy). The latest incarnation of the cold fusion mystery happened in Italy earlier this year. I blogged about it here. Now we finally have an update on the inventors and their tribulations. The main inventor, Andrea Rossi, has built a bigger cold fusion device but still will not let anyone see the inner workings. He does not want to let anyone see the inside because it is a trade secret and he doesn’t have patent protection. As far as anyone who has measured the energy input and output of the device, they all say that it produces a lot more than what is fed in. Early this year, Rossi said that even though he is being secretive, that the market will tell the ultimate truth. If he has produced cold fusion and his device can produce electricity cheaper than traditional sources, then he will be vindicated. So far, no market test. It will be wait and see.

Have a nice Monday! Meteorologist Justin Loew.

Posted under Alternative Energy, First Snowfall 2011, Winter Weather