A criticism of wind power seems to be that it is intermittent
and thus cannot be used as a base load. Because of this
intermittent behavior it is also claimed that a continuously
running backup power system must be kept on line, thereby using
additional energy. It is rarely pointed out that these same
problems exist for solar; in fact they may cause bigger
problems: 1. The sun does not shine at night, thus depending on
the time of year there would by anywhere from about nine to 15
hours of darkness at the latitude of Vermont (wind may blow any
time during the day or night). 2. Even during daylight a passing
cloud will quickly drop the power of the solar panels. 3.
Especially during winter, many days may pass with an overcast
greatly reducing the amount of available light. The above
similarities should be kept in mind when discussing wind energy.
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