Field Assessment of Visual Impact of Offshore Wind Turbines

What is it about?

Eleven commercial-scale offshore wind farms in the United Kingdom were observed from onshore locations to determine how far out to sea they were visible and at what distance they were likely to cause substantial visual impacts. Trained observers assessed how visible the wind farms were at various distances, and the degree to which the wind farms attracted visual attention. Night-time observations were also made of three wind farms.

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Why is it important?

This is the first systematic in-situ study of offshore wind farm visibility and visual contrast. The study found that wind farms were visible beyond 40 km (25 mi) from shore in both day and night-time observations, and that they strongly attracted visual attention at distances exceeding 16 km (10 mi). These distances are much further than previous studies had suggested.