April 16, 2024 — Racing against the Biden administration’s clean energy agenda, members of Congress are pressing for a solution for wind turbines that interfere with plane radars before more offshore wind projects are approved.
As turbines continue to expand in size and number, they create clutter on radar systems that increase the false alarm detection rate. In response, these systems raise the threshold considered a detection and, as a result, may miss actual targets.
The turbines don’t just impact air traffic control and flight safety, but also radar associated with weather forecasting and warnings, coastal sea-surface and maritime surveillance, oceanographic measurements, and homeland and national defense missions, according to the Energy Department.