This is the new 1.5-megawatt wind turbine that was erected a few months ago in the Route 66 town of Tucumcari, N.M.
If you’re a semi-regular visitor to Tucumcari, it’s quite striking to see it for the first time. It’s nearly 400 feet tall, so it dominates the area landscape like nothing else except for Tucumcari Mountain and the grain elevator.
The turbine is part of Mesalands Community College’s North American Wind Research & Training Center. The turbine generates enough power for 400 homes.
As you’ll see from the video, I was standing right under the turbine as rotated. I never for the life of me will understand people who complain about the noise. The sound it makes is nearly negligable, and it’s no worse than ambient noise from the wind itself.