There’s a reason that wind farms are placed offshore rather than in urban areas—the turbines are typically huge, difficult to erect, and need a solid sustained gust to produce any meaningful amount of current. This prototype, on the other hand, will assemble easily and take up little space as it quietly produces kilowatts atop skyscrapers.

Conventional wind farms need wind that is both steady and strong but with very little turbulence. Their turbines are mounted atop 300-foot pylons to avoid the roiling currents at ground level and employ enormous blades to drive their MW generators. Everything operates on a grand scale with these farms, but they’re impractical in an urban environment.

via Tiny Rooftop Turbine Could Make Urban Wind Farms A Reality.