wind power potential

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what is the U.S. potential for electrical energy production from wind power?

Wind densities equal to or greater than 500 W/m2 at an altitude of 50 m are exploitable with current technology; about 1.2% of the land area of the contiguous United States possess such wind densities. If, on average, windfarms contain eight turbines per km2, what is the U.S. potential for electrical energy production from wind power? (Assume a uniform power density of 500 W/m2 and the same turbine design given in part a). The area of the contiguous US is 7,827,989 km2.
i guess i am not the only one who can’t do math

Let’s find total number of turbines to be installed on the exploitable land:

0.012 * 7827989 km^2 * 8 turbine/km^2 = 751490 turbines.

From the earlier answer, each turbine can, on average produce 4300.1 MWh per year.

So, there is a net energy potential of:
4300.1 MWh/(turbine-yr) * 751490 turbines = 3.2315 x10^9 MWh/yr

US total energy consumption in 2006 (including all fuels and uses) was approx. 100 quadrillion BTU. This corresponds to 29.31 x 10^9 MWh

It appears that even if we planted these wind turbines all over the place, we would only meet 11% of the total 2006 demand.

Energy: Wind: The History of Wind Energy, Electricity Generation from the Wind, Types of Wind Turbines, Wind Energy Potential, Offshore Wind … Economic and Policy Issues, Tax Policy $35.00 Since early recorded history, people have been harnessing the energy of the wind. In the United States in the late 19th century, settlers began using windmills to pump water for farms and ranches, and later, to generate electricity for homes and industry. Industrialism led to a gradual decline in the use of windmills. The steam engine replaced European water-pumping windmills, and in the 1930s, th…

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