Is it a bird? Is it a plane? It’s certainly not superman, so what is it?
In fact, it’s a floating wind turbine. A new start-up wind energy company based in America has come up with the rather novel design to harness the power of the wind.
Instead of the blades, which create energy by being turned by the wind, being mounted on a foundation on land or on piles out at sea, they are mounted inside a huge floating balloon so it can catch fast winds.
It is kept in the air by being filled with helium – an ultra lightweight, non-flammable gas used in modern airships.
Altaeros Energies, the firm behind the design, said last month a they successfully tested an 11m (36ft) scale prototype of the so-called Altaeros Airborne Wind Turbine (AWT) in Maine, US.
The device, moored to a towable docking trailer, went about 110m (360ft) into the sky during the test.
The firm says the reason for the height is being able to catch faster winds – as well as reducing any impact from the sound of the blades turning or impacting on the environment.
It could be used in remote industrial, military or village sights, said the firm, which was formed in 2010 out of a team from world renowned MIT.
“For decades, wind turbines have required cranes and huge towers to lift a few hundred feet off the ground where winds can be slow and gusty,” said Ben Glass, the inventor of the AWT and Altaeros chief executive.
“We are excited to demonstrate that modern inflatable materials can lift wind turbines into more powerful winds almost everywhere – with a platform that is cost competitive and easy to setup from a shipping container.”
Altaeros Energies won the 2011 ConocoPhillips Energy Prize, and has received funding from the US Department of Agriculture, the California Energy Commission, and the Maine Technology Institute.
Recommended for you
