Wind Power - Doing it offshore

Floating wind farm

To be build @ Norway

While wind energy isn't necessarily wacky in and of itself, you've got to admit there's something a little out there about a giant wind farm floating in the middle of the ocean. If you plan on visiting Norway in the coming years, you may catch a glimpse of these towering turbines spinning off the country's southwest coast from your airplane window.

Offshore wind farms can only be placed in water up to 131 feet (40 meters) deep, but floating wind turbines are a relatively new concept designed to take advantage of the high-speed winds located farther out at sea.

Since they don't have to be physically buried in the sea floor, floating turbines can be placed in water as deep as 2,297 feet (700 meters).

Even more appealing, perhaps, is the greater energy capacity of these floating turbines. While winds moving across land may only average speeds around 13 feet (4 meters) per second due to obstructions like hills and trees, winds blowing over the open ocean reach speeds at least twice as fast.

Some reports suggest that wind farms could provide up to 15 percent of the world's future energy needs

­StatoilHydro, a Norwegian energy company, has plans to construct the world's first full-scale floating wind farm in 2009. According to the company's Web site, each turbine will wei­gh a total of 5,842 tons (5,300 metric tons). The turbine will stand 213 feet (65 meters) above sea level, while a 328-foot (100-meter).

With such technology of placing wind farm out at sea, there will be less disruption to trading sea lanes or obstruction to multi-million dollar sea-view living apartments.