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Wind Energy Maps and Data
https://windexchange.energy.gov/maps-data?height=80m

NREL, AWS TruePower, U.S. Department of Energy

This is a utility-scale, land-based map of the mean annual wind speed 80 meters above the ground. This map can be used to evaluate the potential for wind energy in the US. State maps and more information are linked from the main map.

Learn more about Teaching Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness»


Energy Literacy

This Static Visualization builds on the following concepts of Energy Literacy.

Click a topic below for supporting information, teaching ideas, and sample activities.

Notes From Our Reviewers The CLEAN collection is hand-picked and rigorously reviewed for scientific accuracy and classroom effectiveness. Read what our review team had to say about this resource below or learn more about how CLEAN reviews teaching materials
Teaching Tips | Science | Pedagogy | Technical Details

Teaching Tips

  • Maps could be printed out and students could work in groups assigned to compare different states' wind capacity.

About the Content

  • Areas with annual average wind speeds around 6.5 meters/second and greater, at an 80-m height, are generally considered to have a wind resource suitable for wind development. Using this and related state maps, students can determine where in the U.S. wind energy is a viable resource for electricity generation.
  • Comments from expert scientist: The link provides access to wind resource maps for the continental US and some information on how they were created.

About the Pedagogy

  • Both the U.S. map and individual state maps can be printed.
  • Can be used to discuss electricity transmission.
  • Students can see how different regions stack up in utilizing wind resources.

Technical Details/Ease of Use

  • Very easy to access maps and supporting materials in a variety of ways.

Related URLs These related sites were noted by our reviewers but have not been reviewed by CLEAN

The National Renewable Energy Lab has a mapping tool to evaluate all forms of renewable energy: RE Atlas
Entered the Collection: February 2013 Last Reviewed: November 2016

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