Quote:
Originally Posted by t walgamuth
The turbine blades are adjustable for angle of attack. I have timed the blades on the ones north of Lafayette. They turn at 18 RPM and it appears they always turn the same speed. I have heard they turn them parallel to the wind and don't operate when the wind is too high, but I have not heard what speed that might be.
At 18 RPM, with blades over 100' in length, I have heard that that equals to near 200 mph at the tip. I'd say birds would have a hard time dodging that kindof speed, even in the daylight, unless they were smart enough to fly around them.
Those pics look just like the windmills here.
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I come up with about a third of that:
100' blade, scribes an arc of approx. 320'. At 18 rpm that's 5760' per minute or 345,600 per hour. About 65.5 mph.
Still nasty. I've heard many times that the newer bigger ones are supposed to be easier on birds than the altamont pass cuisanarts, the older, small, more rapid windmills. But I have no observational knowledge of that.