The warming of the Indian Ocean due to global climate change may be causing a slow decline in India’s wind power potential, according to a study.
India, the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases behind China and the US, is investing billions in wind power and has set the ambitious goal to double its capacity in the next five years, said researchers from the Harvard John A Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS).
The majority of wind turbines are being built in southern and western India to best capture the winds of the summer Indian monsoon, the seasonal weather pattern then brings heavy rains and winds to the subcontinent.
The study, published in the journal Science Advances, found that the Indian monsoon is weakening as a result of warming waters in the Indian Ocean, leading to a steady decline in wind-generated power.
“We found that although India is investing heavily in wind power to tackle climate change and air pollution issues, the benefits of these substantial investments are vulnerable to the changing climate,” said Meng Gao, a postdoctoral fellow at SEAS and the Harvard China Project.
The research calculated the wind power potential in India over the past four decades and found that trends in wind power are tied to the strength of the Indian Summer Monsoon.
In fact, 63 per cent of the annual energy production from wind in India comes from the monsoon winds of spring and summer, researchers said.
