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Wind Turbine Construction Time Lapse (short) watch!

youtube.com — Time lapse of one of the PYCO 1 Megawatt Wind Turbines. The construction of this turbine took place from March 31st 2008 to April 4th 2008 in Lubbock Texas.

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  • jcweezy, on 05/20/2008, -17/+2hey tell danny he's a dork! from colby
  • mark076h, on 05/20/2008, -11/+6awesome video, but why did you put short in the title? the length was fine
  • nizzy1115, on 05/20/2008, -2/+8When the windmills cost say 3 million each, does that come with installation also? It has to be expensive for those machines and manpower and shipping.
    • castevens, on 05/20/2008, -0/+38They buy the turbines on Amazon... free shipping on orders > $25.
    • shaXian, on 05/20/2008, -0/+4The one featured in this video is one of ten in a $16 million project that included purchase and installation.
    • hauntedchippy, on 05/20/2008, -4/+5They are also the most dangerous when considered in terms of deaths per terawatt hour generated
      Wind Power: 0.4
      Hydro: 0.1
      Coal: 0.04
      Gas: 0.01
      Nuclear: 0.001

      Source: "Severe Accidents in the Energy Sector", Paul Scherrer Institut, 2001
      • DeFex, on 05/20/2008, -0/+5theres tons more humans, not enough energy though.
        • hauntedchippy, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2Hey I never thought of it like that, we could help solve the population problem this way.

          Actually ***** it, lets just use people to fuel the furnaces.
      • MASTERPL, on 05/20/2008, -3/+2Are you ***** serious? Wind power is bad because some birds die?
        I guess Lions are bad too. Poor gazelles.
      • DiggND, on 06/30/2008, -0/+0I believe those statistics are quite outdated.
  • garywoo, on 05/20/2008, -7/+2That is a great video, but where is T. Boone Pickens?
  • hinmanj, on 05/20/2008, -11/+1They just stack the pieces on top of each other? Geez, it doesn't even look like they are glued together or anything, though I'm assuming they are bonded in some way.
    • garywoo, on 05/20/2008, -1/+17They are bolted together from the inside, glue doesn't really work well for 100 ton generators.
  • ginnipig, on 05/20/2008, -0/+7the two guys that ride up on top of the turbine housing have some balls! thats one ride i wouldn't want to fall off.
  • glinsvad, on 05/20/2008, -0/+69Wind Turbine Destruction (shorter):
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nSB1SdVHqQ
    • PinkFloydFan, on 05/20/2008, -0/+24Wow, that was A LOT cooler! And not a Rick Roll, bonus points.
    • rangermatt, on 05/20/2008, -0/+8I prefer this one, thanks to the great "explosion" sound: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3FZtmlHwcA&feature ...
    • willemmulder, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1:) I love how the clouds do not seem to move at all...

      Could be just wrong, but *if* there was little wind, how did the thing move that fast?
      If the breaking mechanism is broken, does it mean that there is (almost) no friction at all? Like, the connection to the generator is lost?
      • glinsvad, on 05/20/2008, -0/+4On the second video posted by rangermatt above, the wind is much more visible...

        I'm pretty sure the generator was enganged the whole time and that, without brakes, the high winds simply made the mill spin out of control.
    • Goblin, on 05/20/2008, -0/+5If you've ever been close to one of these they move a hell of a lot faster than you'd think looking from a distance, even in relatively light winds. There should be an automatic brake that stops the turbine when wnid speed is too high, presumably it had failed on these examples.

      The first thing I thought of when I saw it collapse was the scene in Contact where the bomb is set off when they're first running the machine.
    • GreyFlcn, on 05/20/2008, -0/+3That isn't really a problem with these wind turbines.
      http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/1476/86/
      • malanic, on 05/21/2008, -0/+3That was interesting. They look very promising. I don't know why some people buried you.
    • toddhenkel, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1Better than watching a coal or nuclear plant self destruct...
    • mestefantro, on 05/21/2008, -0/+2I logged in just to digg your comment.
  • jennicamorel, on 05/20/2008, -7/+2They're doing it rong! it's pointing the rong direction!
    • mark076h, on 05/20/2008, -0/+5No, most of these new wind turbines can detect which way the wind is blowing and pivot 360 degrees to position itself for optimal performance.
    • awtripp, on 05/20/2008, -0/+3I can't be sure, as I am not an expert in wind-turbinology, but I do know that you are spelling incorrectly. Or, in another word, WRONG.
    • Clugenheim, on 05/20/2008, -0/+5You're absolutely wright!
  • TheAtomicMoose, on 05/20/2008, -0/+8Woah, clouds are sweet.
    • jftitan, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2The long version of this video... all I looked at was the clouds. Its amazing what the weather is like during time laps videos.
  • BXRWXR, on 05/20/2008, -11/+6That video blows.
    • Seidoger, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Just like the wind
      • palehorse864, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1I think that's what he was going for, but judging by the digg downs, nobody got it. Heh, or they just didn't like it.
  • ebakken, on 05/20/2008, -9/+2Boringest Video Ever.
  • Rocketman1882, on 05/20/2008, -1/+5Huzzah, my conservative town is finally turning more green.
  • SlipStream89, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2Any one else notice the high def link under the # of views?
  • rangermatt, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1It's almost as interesting to watch the cloud formations change over time, especially the last day of installation. Seems like you could learn a lot about meteorology from time-lapse photography.
  • Ell3, on 05/20/2008, -11/+4Yea...this is a real "solution" to pollution, littering the landscape with these massive things. That makes about as much sens as littering the landscape with acres of solar panels that will all end up in landfills someday.
    • youreh, on 05/20/2008, -3/+3yeah, it's far more ridiculous to burn animals millions of years old and then breathe in the noxious fumes... that only kills thousands of people annually.

      btw, solar panels can be building mounted, thus taking up no extra space and is on-site. a little more expensive but far smarter in the long haul. not to mention solar panels can be recycled.
      • HonestAbe, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Fossil fuels suck. Wind and solar suck. Good thing there are other options.
  • jiller, on 05/20/2008, -12/+7***** IT! WE'LL DO IT LIVE!
    • noseeme, on 05/20/2008, -1/+5Not funny in this context. Don't give up on the whole humour thing though.
  • EricSancho, on 05/20/2008, -1/+6Is it normal to have a strange urge to attack those giants with a spear?
  • Ell3, on 05/20/2008, -14/+4Yea...this is a real "solution" to pollution, littering the landscape with these massive things. That makes about as much sens as littering the landscape with acres of solar panels that will all end up in landfills someday. America's liberal leftists don't want to drill for oil in ANWR because it will "damage the delicate environment", yet they applaud these huge ugly things.

    "Liberalism is the art of standing on your head and telling the rest of the world it's upside-down." -- Jim Quinn
    • redcard, on 05/20/2008, -2/+5Oil derricks are just as ugly. So is oil piping. What would you do with the oil after we pull it out of ANWR? Send it by sea or over the crumbling apart Alaska Pipeline?

      If we put solar panels on the roofs of every building in the US, we'd have enough to power the US's energy needs right now.
    • Dennisisok, on 05/20/2008, -2/+5Ugly? I think they are rather pretty.
      • Goblin, on 05/20/2008, -0/+3I agree, but their installation is pretty limited at the minute, I suspect if they become common and cover huge swathes of the country they could become a little invasive.
    • Jexie, on 05/22/2008, -1/+1Oh my god the same posts over and over and over....someone call John McCain's office and insist Ell3 get a pay decrease for being lazy. This is pretty boring even for you Ell3.
    • amightywind, on 05/22/2008, -1/+1No only are they numerous and ugly, they are expensive. The capital costs of large wind generators is radically out of whack with how much power they generate. You could cover 1000's of square miles with wind generators and produce as much safe, cheap energy with 1 compact nuclear plant.
      Liberals have been getting by on the con that alternative energy is practical. It is not. At best it is symbolic. Why the leftists (including McCain) refuse to drill in the frozen waste of ANWR is completely baffling.
  • moolaismyfriend, on 05/20/2008, -1/+3Very cool. I always love all the wind turbines on I-580 on your way to or from I-5 in or out of the Bay Area, and also outside of Palm Springs as well.
  • computerusr, on 05/20/2008, -4/+2Couldn't sit through it, it sure took the WIND out of me.
  • hartley, on 05/20/2008, -1/+2Am I the only one that thinks of the Benny Hill music when they see time lapsed videos?
    • dohidied, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Nope, I did too. Maybe we're just weird.
  • hmalik, on 05/20/2008, -2/+3I did not know it was that easy to have alternative source of energy :P
  • Huangism, on 05/20/2008, -3/+3why is this video any good? it's just the construction of a structure
  • u8eR, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2Doesn't look very windy.
    • shaXian, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1They actually had a couple of delay days due to wind. You don't really want the wind blowing when you are running a crane that is 150 meters tall.
    • LadySilverwings, on 05/24/2008, -0/+0shaZian is right... and believe me, there's plenty of wind in west Texas. The ones in Lubbock are almost all operational now, and we can't drive past them without most of them turning. (And these aren't just going up in Lubbock! They're popping up like daisys all over the place.)
  • mlvassallo, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1This is pretty cool. I was driving from Amarillo to Austin on Sunday and in between Lubbock and Abilene you see hundreds on wind turbines and I couldn't help but try to deconstruct them in my head. It is pretty amazing how simplistic they are.
  • Dennisisok, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2I'd love to see a few thousand more of these things pop up. I find them strangely beautiful.
  • toliseju, on 05/20/2008, -1/+1I love how the sky clears up as it is being built- it's like the earth is happy! :)
  • digitronix, on 05/20/2008, -2/+1Going green, I see! I like that.
  • sesstreets, on 05/20/2008, -1/+5THEY TAKE FOUR DAYS!? Are you kidding me? There needs to be more.
  • HonestAbe, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Wind Turbine De(con)struction Slow Motion:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvvRHhsQhi8
    • noseeme, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Damn, all I saw was a *****-ton of electricity being created, and then POP, no more.
  • noseeme, on 05/20/2008, -0/+4Wow, wind turbines are the latest Digg (and Reddit) fad. At least this is one fad I'm happy to play along with!!!
  • Aksumka, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Was anyone more interested in watching the sky than the construction?
  • GreyFlcn, on 05/20/2008, -0/+2Interesting.
    But I find this reconcepted wind turbine using jet engine physics to be fascinating :P

    Anyone wanna digg this?
    http://www.ecogeek.org/content/view/1476/86/
    • kevinsboy, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1This video is a bit fishy, when they label the "stator and the rotor" at the beginning of the clip its pointing to turbine blades. At the end when they show the schematic of the traditional turbines they scaled down the blades. Also I'm not an expert on wind mills but in this whole concept they never showed the location of the generator.

  • TomTruelle, on 05/20/2008, -1/+1.
  • Shawn4168, on 05/20/2008, -0/+8YOU MUST CONSTRUCT ADDITIONAL PYLONS
  • beerbarron, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1You mean its a screw less construction? On a serious note, I dont see why they dont develop these in the sea, you could harness the power of the sea and wind at the same time, and not create an eye soar ...
  • noisebastard, on 05/20/2008, -0/+1Thanks! Very interesing video!
  • pmcizhere, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1Time-lapses are always cool.
  • MacTyler, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1How on earth do these things stick together? It looked like they were just stacked/balanced on top of one another!
    • itzdank, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1There are about 100 very large bolts holding each section of the tower together.
  • toddhenkel, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1I call Photoshopped. That thing looked HUGE - not short... look closely...
    • shaXian, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1Uhhh. You're kidding right? If i'd have shopped that I'd at least have rotoscoped those awful powerlines out of the frame.

      Hmmm. irony. Remove the power lines from a movie about a device to harness power.


      ...and he disappeared in a puff of logic.
      • LadySilverwings, on 05/24/2008, -0/+0This is actually real! Ever heard of "perspective"? That's what's happening in this video. Windmills, especially in the flat parts of West Texas, look a lot smaller than they actually are if you look at them from a distance.
  • p51d007, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1Cool idea, but, put them in the plains states, mainly "tornado alley" and one good tornado and down they come.
    But, at least before they come down, they will be producing some serious electricity for a short period of time ;)
  • itzdank, on 05/21/2008, -1/+1I work in Palm Springs as a windmill technician, the only way to the top of one of these things is a very long ladder up the middle. During 80-90mph winds, being in the top section is almost like being in a rollercoaster.
    • malanic, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1Are you telling me that they send personnel up inside those things in the middle of a hurricane? If the winds are 80-90mph then you'd be crazy just to jump in your car to get to the thing in the first place.
      I'm calling BS.
      • itzdank, on 05/22/2008, -0/+1You're right. I meant gusts. 60-70 mph is fairly common with gusts reaching 90mph. We try not to go up in those situations, but it happens.
  • kommit99, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1If you look at the clouds, they are moving in a completely different direction, blown by the wind, and the air turbine is pointing in a different direction. Seems like some one messed up.
    • IVIrMP3, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1They turn themselves. DUH! They each have a ultrasonic wind sensor to sense the direction. And if they're anything like the GE 1.5's they will communicate with each other to find the mean wind direction. It's also a backup feature in case the sensor failed. They also turn the blades about 80 degrees and apply a brake so it stops turning in high winds.
  • spunkinator, on 05/21/2008, -0/+1I think this is the first time I've ever seen coherent, thought-out Youtube comments.
  • ChadN, on 05/21/2008, -0/+0Just look at all those cars whizzing by. Want to speculate whether the energy used by the cars in the video over those four days will ever be recouped by the wind turbine over its lifetime?
  •  

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