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Spinoff story
Modeling Innovations Advance Wind Energy Industry
A real-world story of NASA technology finding a life beyond the mission.
About this technology
Overview
In 1981, Glenn Research Center scientist Dr. Larry Viterna developed a model that predicted certain elements of wind turbine performance with far greater accuracy than previous methods. The model was met with derision from others in the wind energy industry, but years later, Viterna discovered it had become the most widely used method of its kind, enabling significant wind energy technologies-like the fixed pitch turbines produced by manufacturers like Aerostar Inc., of Westport, Massachusetts-that are providing sustainable, climate friendly energy sources today.