Explore Virginia's offshore wind energy potential

Air density

Air density is defined as mass per unit volume of air. At higher air densities, more kinetic energy is available in the wind and thus power production is greater.

Air pressure

Air pressure varies as meteorological conditions change. It is the differences in air pressure across an area or a region that provides the driving force of wind.

Capacity factor

Capacity Factor describes the percentage of energy produced by a wind turbine during a fixed period (typically one year) as compared to the energy that would be produced if the turbine were operating at nameplate capacity continuously.

Humidity

The relative humidity describes the fraction of water vapor contained in the air as compared to the total water vapor that could be contained given the current temperature and pressure.

Power production

The modeled wind conditions are applied to the power curve of the NREL offshore 5-MW baseline wind turbine to estimate power generation. The appropriate number of turbines is assumed for the unit area described.

Wind shear

Wind shear is defined as the difference between wind speeds at maximum and minimum height of the rotor divided by the difference between the two heights.