Researchers in Spain are using high speed video to document high voltage leaders and streamers originating from wind turbine blades.
The data indicates that high voltage streamers/leaders occur roughly every three seconds as the blades rotate and these events can last minutes or hours. The wind turbine blades do not need to be directly near an active storm as the streamers/leaders can appear while the storm is several kilometers away.
This research provides terrific insight into the high voltage environment that wind turbines operate in.
Additionally, Lightning discharges produced by wind turbines authors Joan Montanya et al include figures showing distribution of the ELMA flash originating on a wind turbine and terminating at the ground. See full paper here.
Update: More recent research from Montanya highlights unique risks to wind turbines due to the prevalence of winter lightning. See Global distribution of winter lightning in the March 2016 issue of Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences. Ongoing work by Dr. Hui Hu’s researcher team at Iowa State University is driving improvements in protecting wind turbines from ice damage. See the 2022 interview with Dr. Hu here.
For more information regarding the research, click the links below:
