The Skystream turbine is located next to the MorningStar home. It is associated with the Department of Energy (DOE) Wind for Schools/REpowering Schools program, led by Dr. Susan Stewart in the Aerospace Engineering Department. The 3-bladed, horizontal axis, downwind wind turbine was installed in July 2011 and it has a rated generating capacity of 2.1 kW at 11 m/s (as certified by the Small Wind Certification Council). It is mounted on a 70 ft steel monopole tower. It has an internal data acquisition system which sends data on its power performance to a computer inside the MorningStar home through a ZigBee wireless transmitter. A series of three anemometers, which measure wind speed, are also mounted on the tower along with a wind vane to measure wind direction, allowing for analysis of the wind shear conditions on the site. This data is sent to the computer system inside the MorningStar via a data cable under the ground into the basement of the home. The blades of this turbine are slightly curved in an “S-type” shaped for noise reduction in the downwind configuration and the rotor has an overall diameter of 12 feet. The electricity from the Skystream feeds into the grid, and thus this is a grid-tied installation. The Skystream turbine is a great example installation for the Wind for Schools/REpowering Schools program and the data under collection is useful for studying the impact of turbulence on the performance of small wind as well as siting analysis for wind energy. For more information visit the