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Pie in the Sky? Harnessing the Jet Stream

FIVE MILES ABOVE US, JET STREAM WINDS WHIP AT TWO HUNDRED MILES PER HOUR - COULD THE WORLD'S ENERGY NEEDS BE MET BY HARNESSING THEM? WE’LL AIM HIGH ON TODAY'S ENVIRONMINUTE.

TO KEN CALDEIRA OF THE CARNEGIE INSTITUTION AT STANFORD, THE JET STREAM REPRESENTS A HUGE, UNTAPPED SUPPLY OF POTENTIAL ENERGY.

CALDEIRA: IF WE JUST TAPPED INTO ONE PERCENT OF THE ENERGY IN HIGH ALTITUDE WINDS, THAT WOULD BE ENOUGH TO POWER ALL OF CIVILIZATION.

SCIENTISTS ARE DESIGNING LARGE KITE-LIKE DEVICES TO CAPTURE THE WINDS. IT MAY SEEM LIKE PIE IN THE SKY – AND THE IMPACTS ON WILDLIFE ARE STILL UNKNOWN - BUT CALDEIRA IS OPTIMISTIC.

CALDEIRA: WE CAME INTO WORLD WAR TWO FLYING BIPLANES AND CAME OUT OF WORLD WAR TWO FLYING JET FIGHTERS.  IF THERE WAS INCENTIVE TO COMMERCIALIZE THESE THINGS I THINK THEY COULD BE UP AND FLYING AND COMMERCIAL IN A COUPLE OF YEARS.

IF HE’S CORRECT, THE SKY MAY JUST BE THE LIMIT!

THE ENVIRONMINUTE IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE HEINZ FAMILY PHILANTHROPIES AND THE HEINZ ENDOWMENTS.  LEARN MORE BY VISITING ENVIRONMINUTE-DOT-COM.     

To learn more about wind energy, visit http://www.awea.org/

Read more about the jet stream possibility at http://www.skywindpower.com/ww/index.htm

To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org