Off-Shore Monster

Wind power has gotten a massive physical upgrade, and even Don Quixote would need to think twice before taking on this windmill from Danish company MHI Vestas Offshore Wind. Their V164 offshore wind turbine is a 220 meter (722 feet) tall sea-monster, and the latest version is now the world record holder for the most energy generated by a single turbine over a 24-hour period. According to Digital Trends, the nearly 216,000 kWh generated is enough electricity “to power the average American household for roughly 20 years.”

The blades on the 9 MW turbine weigh in at over 34 metric tons (38 tons) and measure an impressive 80 meters (263 feet) in length. To put this in perspective, at 21,124 square meters (227,377 square feet), the turbine’s sweep area (the complete area of its blades in motion) is larger than the UK’s famous London Eye Ferris wheel. The V164 is built to have a 25-year lifespan and is 80 percent recyclable, which only adds to its efficiency.

Cheap Green Power

Renewable energy is rapidly becoming more economically viable than even already-established forms of fossil fuel power generation. Solar power is also rapidly gaining traction in the United States, growing 191 percent in 2016. More governments are turning to renewable energy to power their cities (Las Vegas runs all of its government buildings using renewable energy), and states are following shortly behind (Massachusetts has introduced a bill to require the state to use 100 percent renewable energy by 2035).

Enterprise is also jumping on the renewable energy bandwagon. Microsoft and Google both have made pledges to rely on fewer, if any, fossil fuels. The decreasing price of setting up the infrastructure to create energy renewably is causing businesses to realize that investing in clean energy is a smart financial decision. A world run on clean energy is not some pipe dream. Even just using currently existing technology, we can make it a reality.