Fiona Graybill- Scientists want to put 'speed bumps' in hurricane alley to slow down storms

With the climate changing and our realities being rocked by things we have done, scientists are studying the ways that we could potentially slow down the effects of hurricanes in hurricane alley. Cristina Archer, a professor at the College of Earth, Ocean and Environment on the University of Delaware campus has been studying windmills and how they could prove useful. Archer explains that when strong winds from a hurricane meet windmills, they have no place to go but up, it shoots moisture into the air and causes precipitation. This process is called convergence. The opposite of convergence is divergence and that is the process in which the air is pushed down and suppresses rainfall. In order to use windmills to weaken the intensity of rain fall, Archer explains that there must be a series of turbines in which the process of convergence and divergence happens. The turbines would be located off shore in order to provide enough moisture for both processes to happen. As other factors are taken into consideration with this idea, it has been made clear that the current turbines are shut down during high wind situations like those of a hurricane, but it is expected that by 2020, manufacturers will have developed a turbine that can withstand these powerful storms.

While reading this article, I was reminded of an event in United States history that doesn't fit into what is currently being discussed in class, but is the most relevant to the article. In the 1930s, a direct result of overusing the soil in the plains was the dust bowl and in result, the alteration of the natural environment led to a disastrous time in the plains. As we contribute to the changing of our climate, we are fueling mega-storms like Florence and Harvey, two hurricanes mentioned in the article suspected of gaining strength due to climate change. This article is not only showing Americans the detrimental effects of climate change, but it is advertising it on a global scale. This is not just an American problem, it is a global one. I do believe that as a community on planet Earth, we need to try and change our actions that are fueling the change in the climate, but I feel that the looking into use of offshore windmills to serve as a barrier to oncoming storms is a smart one that also not contributing to the problem.

https://www.popsci.com/hurricane-speed-bumps-wind-farm