Wind energy is the usage of a wind turbine to catch the energy that is in the wind. This is a relatively common form of renewable energy. It produces less energy than geothermal only because there are much larger-scale geothermal plants and geothermal energy has a longer history. Wind energy systems are similar to solar power in that there are lots of residential and very small-scale areas that have person wind turbines. For example, in Denmark, the country with the largest proportion of wind energy to overall energy, almost all of the turbines are privately owned, rather than owned by private companies.
Wind energy has a huge potential, with a large enough industry. Theoretically, with maximum employment of all available resources, it is possible that North Dakota alone could supply more than a quarter of all United States energy demand. Texas, Montana, South Dakota, and Kansas have similar wind energy potential. Furthermore, there are already some countries that have vast portions of their energy needs met from wind sources, including Denmark, with 20% of their energy coming from wind. Worldwide, the United States Department of Energy predicts that various wind energy projects could supply up to fifteen times its current amount of energy, which means that it would account for about ten percent of the world’s energy usage.
Furthermore, there is lots of potential for wind energy to be an excellent renewable source for consumers. The energy payback time (the length of time before it has paid for itself) of a wind turbine is far smaller than that for installing solar panels. Normally, even with the wind speed tests that must be performed before residential consumers can put a wind turbine in their backyard, the energy payback time is only eight to twelve months. It is estimated that the energy payback time of solar panels may be longer than the life of the panels.