this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2025
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'Windmill': China tests world’s first megawatt-level airship to capture high winds (interestingengineering.com)
submitted 1 day ago by kalkulat@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world
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"High-altitude winds between 1,640 and 3,281 feet (500 and 10,000 meters) above the ground are stronger and steadier than surface winds. These winds are abundant, widely available, and carbon-free.

"The physics of wind power makes this resource extremely valuable. “When wind speed doubles, the energy it carries increases eightfold, triple the speed, and you have 27 times the energy,” explained Gong Zeqi "

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[–] Revan343@lemmy.ca 6 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago) (2 children)

To be fair everything but nuclear is just indirect solar power (and if you count other stars besides just Sol, even fission kinda is)

Edit: And I guess geothermal isn't really solar power either, that's residual heat from formation of the planet

[–] sobchak@programming.dev 4 points 7 hours ago

Tidal too. Slows the Earth's rotation a minuscule amount more than usual.

[–] dsilverz@calckey.world 2 points 8 hours ago (1 children)

@Revan343@lemmy.ca @snugglesthefalse@sh.itjust.works
(And also @Mandarbmax@lemmy.world as per their other, simultaneous reply within the upper sub-thread)

Isn't the gravitational pull from the Moon part of the force behind winds? My reasoning here is something like Moon orbits the Earth -> Moon exerts gravitational pull on Earth's oceans -> water from oceans get displaced as the Moon orbits -> water displacement displaces air -> breeze/wind.

[–] Mandarbmax@lemmy.world 2 points 7 hours ago

Ya that makes sense but looking it up that doesn't seem to be a major source of wind and I don't know why not. Probably has an effect but is order of magnitudes weaker than solar heating and Coriolis effect (which having looked it up seems to be the #2 cause of wind).