Global warming will not hurt wind output.

• Position: Energy Production

The production of wind energy in the U.S. over the next 30-50 years largely will be unaffected by upward changes in global temperature, indicate a pair of scientists from Indiana University, Bloomington, who analyzed output from several regional climate models to assess future wind patterns in America's lower 48 states and a portion of northern Mexico.

"The greatest consistencies in wind density we found were over the Great Plains, which are already being used to harness wind, and over the Great Lakes, which the U.S. and Canada are looking at right now," explains Sara Pryor, professor of atmospheric science and the project's principal investigator. "Areas where the model predicts decreases in wind density are quite limited, and many of the areas where wind density is predicted to decrease are off-limits for wind farms anyway."

Adds fellow professor of atmospheric science Rebecca Barthelmie: "There are a lot of myths out there about the stability of wind patterns, and industry and government want more information before making decisions to exband it."

Comparing model predictions for 2041-62 to past observations of wind density (1979-2000), most areas were predicted to see little or no change; those...