The number of turbines installed in the U.S. each year varies based on a number of factors, but on average 3,000 turbines have been built in the U.S. each year since 2005.
Learn more:
Related Content
Can wind turbines harm wildlife?
A key challenge facing the wind industry is the potential for turbines to adversely affect wild animals both directly, via collisions, as well as indirectly due to noise pollution, habitat loss, and reduced survival or reproduction. Among the most impacted wildlife are birds and bats, which by eating destructive insects provide billions of dollars of economic benefits to the country’s agricultural...
How are wind turbine data collected?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database project compiles wind turbine information from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s (LBNL) Wind Technologies Market Report dataset, the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) wind turbine and project datasets, and the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) legacy (2014) wind turbine dataset, as well as online sources...
How many turbines are contained in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database?
As of January 2021, the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) contains more than 67,000 turbines. These turbines have all been constructed since 1980 in approximately1,500 wind power projects spanning at least 44 states (plus Puerto Rico and Guam). Learn more: Wind Energy
How often is the U.S. Wind Turbine Database updated?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is updated every three months [or four times a year] and contains turbines that were installed as recently as 3 months preceding the update.Learn more: Wind Energy
Why is it important to know the locations of wind turbines?
No publicly-available, national database of wind turbines existed prior to the creation of the USGS Windfarm mapper, which was replaced with the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) in 2018. Knowing the location of individual turbines and their technical specifications creates new opportunities for research and improved siting and is important information for land and resource management. In...
Why isn't the turbine in my backyard included in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is designed to be a comprehensive source of information for utility-scale wind turbines in the United States; residential-scale turbines are excluded. We have removed turbines known to be residential scale and have excluded turbines that are both less than 65 kilowatts (kW) in rated capacity and less than 30 meters in total height. We are not aware of a...
How much wind energy does it take to power an average home?
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average U.S. home uses 867 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per month. The mean turbine capacity in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is 1.67 megawatts (MW). At a 33% capacity factor, that average turbine would generate over 402,000 kWh per month - enough for over 460 average U.S. homes. To put it another way, the average wind turbine...
Related Content
- FAQ
Can wind turbines harm wildlife?
A key challenge facing the wind industry is the potential for turbines to adversely affect wild animals both directly, via collisions, as well as indirectly due to noise pollution, habitat loss, and reduced survival or reproduction. Among the most impacted wildlife are birds and bats, which by eating destructive insects provide billions of dollars of economic benefits to the country’s agricultural...
How are wind turbine data collected?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database project compiles wind turbine information from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s (LBNL) Wind Technologies Market Report dataset, the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) wind turbine and project datasets, and the United States Geological Survey’s (USGS) legacy (2014) wind turbine dataset, as well as online sources...
How many turbines are contained in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database?
As of January 2021, the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) contains more than 67,000 turbines. These turbines have all been constructed since 1980 in approximately1,500 wind power projects spanning at least 44 states (plus Puerto Rico and Guam). Learn more: Wind Energy
How often is the U.S. Wind Turbine Database updated?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is updated every three months [or four times a year] and contains turbines that were installed as recently as 3 months preceding the update.Learn more: Wind Energy
Why is it important to know the locations of wind turbines?
No publicly-available, national database of wind turbines existed prior to the creation of the USGS Windfarm mapper, which was replaced with the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) in 2018. Knowing the location of individual turbines and their technical specifications creates new opportunities for research and improved siting and is important information for land and resource management. In...
Why isn't the turbine in my backyard included in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database?
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is designed to be a comprehensive source of information for utility-scale wind turbines in the United States; residential-scale turbines are excluded. We have removed turbines known to be residential scale and have excluded turbines that are both less than 65 kilowatts (kW) in rated capacity and less than 30 meters in total height. We are not aware of a...
How much wind energy does it take to power an average home?
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average U.S. home uses 867 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per month. The mean turbine capacity in the U.S. Wind Turbine Database (USWTDB) is 1.67 megawatts (MW). At a 33% capacity factor, that average turbine would generate over 402,000 kWh per month - enough for over 460 average U.S. homes. To put it another way, the average wind turbine...
- Multimedia
- Publications
- News