Wind Turbines, Near Tracy, CA, 2010.
Wind Turbines, Near Tracy, CA, 2010.
Wind Turbines, Near Tracy, CA, 2010.
A histogram of pixels at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4491948497
#photography
25 comments
25 comments
Wind Turbines, Near Tracy, CA, 2010.
Wind Turbines, Near Tracy, CA, 2010.
A histogram of pixels at https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattblaze/4491948497
#photography
This was captured near the Tesla substation (no relation to the car company) near Altamont Pass with a DSLR and a 400mm lens, compressing the turbines in a way that made them resemble a histogram.
There's a lot of power being generated in those hills. The was an audible hum in the air and vibrations could be felt in the ground. In some spots, the camera rebooted from induced currents.
Infrastructure like this is easy to ignore, but has an accidental beauty that I think is worth examining.
The scale of these wind farms is beyond what we're equipped to process in day-to-day human experience. They conquer the landscape in ways we can't fully comprehend even when they're in front of us. In a sense, they're abstract sculptures of themselves, mostly visible in fleeting glances from interstate highways or airplane windows.
@mattblaze@federate.social it's interesting to compare that to the pollution footprint from fossil plants as well. Especially where fracking is used you often get a disturbingly large plume of unhealthy air and groundwater. But just the "soot zone" (now hopefully metaphorical rather than literal) around and downwind of generators surprises many people by its size and impact.
@mattblaze@federate.social
There's an INSANE amount of solar production in the red outlined section of the the map image attached. Driving through it is nuts. It's like a sci Fi movie, miles and miles of silver, towers, power infra.
@mattblaze@federate.social I have passed by those turbines many times! Great shot!
@mattblaze@federate.social In 2024 wind farms are still growing fast. The Netherlands now has approximately 4GW of sea-based wind, which delivers an average of ~50% of rated power. In 2030 they want to have 30 GW, in 2050 it should be 70 GW. I can see between 2-3 GW at 20-60 km distance from my bedroom window. No vibrations here. This is the panoramic image capturing the scene. https://share.icloud.com/photos/018OeydkiARWE2Sc2hHWCCjWg
@mattblaze@federate.social Nice photo, Matt.
I love wind turbines. I could sit and watch them for hours. Mesmerizing.
@mattblaze@federate.social Because getting an idle turbine started requires energy input, there’s some interesting statistical analysis of wind conditions to determine whether starting one will be a net gain.