Who invented wind energy?
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Introduction
Wind power is one of the oldest sources of energy, with evidence dating back to 2000 BC. The earliest references to windmills can be found in ancient writings from China, Persia and Egypt. The first European reference dates back to at least the 8th century AD while the first known American windmill was built sometime between 1630 and 1660 in Massachusetts
1900 BC: Egyptian sail
Sails have been used for thousands of years to catch wind and move boats. The earliest known sailboat was built in Egypt around 1900 BC, but it wasn’t used as a power source. Sailboats are still popular today, especially on rivers and lakes where their use is less expensive than motorboats since they don’t use gas or diesel fuel.
Sails were made from papyrus reed (an early form of paper), which grows in Egypt along the Nile River where it was used for fishing and navigating this ancient body of water.
200 BC: China
You may not have heard of a windmill, but you’ve almost certainly seen one. They’re spinning all over the place!
Windmills were first used in China around 200 BC to grind grain and pump water. These early versions were quite simplistic in design: they consisted of giant wooden blades attached to an axis which rotated as the wind blew by them. It wasn’t until the 17th century that Europeans began to use windmills for other purposes such as papermaking and silk production. Also during this time, people started using windmills as a source of power for boats—the first ships with sails were actually powered by sails on top of massive rotating wheels!
200 AD: Persia
The first use of wind energy was in Persia around 200 AD. The Persians were a superpower at this time, and they used the wind to fill water tanks and grind grain. This technology was later brought to Europe by the Arabs and Moors.
7th century: Persia again
The 7th century saw windmills in Persia, which were used to grind grains. These windmills were horizontal axis mills with large blades mounted on top of a building. They were called the Persian Windmill and are one of the earliest known applications of vertical axis turbines.
12th century: Europe
For the next several centuries, windmills were used primarily for grinding grain in Europe. They were big, wooden structures that looked like giant ears of corn. The Romans had built them before, but they didn’t really catch on until the 12th century when Europeans started using them to grind grain in areas where there was no river or stream nearby to power a water wheel.
Windmills were also used for pumping water out of polders, which are low-lying lands that have been reclaimed from the ocean or rivers by building dykes around them. When it rains heavily, these areas can get flooded with water that needs to be drained away so people can continue farming the land inside of them (or whatever else they needed to do). The Dutch built windmills designed specifically for this purpose and they became known as “water mills.”
14th century: Netherlands
The Netherlands is famous for its many windmills, which were used to drain land and power saws. The Dutch even used windmills to pump water out of the ground. However, in the 14th century, when other places were just beginning to use windmills as a source of energy, Dutch people were already using them for all sorts of purposes.
17th century: England
- Windmills, which are used to convert the kinetic energy of wind into mechanical power or electricity, appeared in Europe during the 17th century. The first windmill was built in 1180 in Holland.
- In England, windmills were also used for milling grain and pumping water. Later on, they were used to grind tobacco leaves and make paper pulp.
- Denmark became known for its high-quality sails throughout much of Europe; these sails helped make it one of the most popular places to build a windmill at that time!
- Windmills were also built throughout Germany, France and Spain – all over Europe really!
18th century: Europe again
In the 18th century, Europe led the way with windmills that were used to power industrial machinery. These mills used wind power to grind grain and pump water, but they also helped create jobs in cities by making it possible for people to work at home rather than leaving their families behind on farms.
19th century, y’all.
Wind energy has been used for thousands of years. In the 19th century, however, wind power was harnessed for the first time for practical uses. The first windmill was built by William Leggett in 1854 near New York City, and it only produced enough electricity to power two light bulbs. The first commercially viable wind turbine was built by Charles Brush in Cleveland, Ohio in 1887. While not a commercial success at the time (it’s hard to sell something that costs $3 million!), this device did lay down some important groundwork for future development. He also designed an alternating current generator which used permanent magnets rather than electromagnets as well as other innovations in electric motors and generators over his career as well as being an inventor who contributed significantly to AC power transmission technology during these early years
20th century
In the early 20th century, wind energy was used to power the first radio broadcast and flight. The first car driven by wind energy was built in 1900 by Ferdinand Porsche (yes, that Porsche).
In 1903, one of the earliest examples of large-scale wind farms appeared on a mountaintop in Oahu, Hawaii. In 1925, a German inventor named Anton Flettner built an enormous airplane that used gyroscopes to remain balanced in the air without any input from its pilot; this design is still used today in high-tech drones like those made by DJI and Intel.
In 1959, NASA launched its first satellite into space using an Atlas rocket powered by liquid oxygen and hydrogen peroxide (which itself was burned in part by air passing through it).
Wind power is pretty old.
Wind power is a very old technology, and has been used by many different cultures. In fact, windmills have been around since at least 100 A.D., when they were built to grind grain in both Europe and China. Wind energy was also used to pump water out of mines in the UK as early as the 18th century!
Wind power is considered a renewable energy source because it uses an endless supply of natural resources: wind blows continuously all over the world, day after day—and night after night! This means that there’s always more than enough wind for us to use it for our own purposes.
Wind power is also considered clean energy because it doesn’t produce harmful emissions like pollution from vehicles or factories do when they burn fossil fuels such as coal or oil
Conclusion
Wind power has been around for a long time, and it’s still going strong. If you thought wind was just for sailing ships and making fans, think again! Wind is a renewable energy source that we can use to fuel our homes and businesses.
