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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
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Utility-Scale Land-Based 80-Meter Wind Maps

The U.S. Department of Energy provides an 80-meter (m) height, high-resolution wind resource map for the United States with links to state wind maps. States, utilities, and wind energy developers use utility-scale wind resource maps to locate and quantify the wind resource, identifying potentially windy sites within a fairly large region and determining a potential site's economic and technical viability.

A wind resource map of the United States. Washington wind map and resources. Oregon wind map and resources. California wind map and resources. Idaho wind map and resources. Nevada wind map and resources. Arizona wind map and resources. Utah wind map and resources. Montana wind map and resources. Wyoming wind map and resources. North Dakota wind map and resources. South Dakota wind map and resources. Nebraska wind map and resources. Colorado wind map and resources. New Mexico wind map and resources. Kansas wind map and resources. Oklahoma wind map and resources. Texas wind map and resources. Minnesota wind map and resources. Iowa wind map and resources. Missouri wind map and resources. Arkansas wind map and resources. Lousiana wind map and resources. Wisconsin wind map and resources. Michigan wind map and resources. Michigan wind map and resources. Illinois wind map and resources. Indiana wind map and resources. Ohio wind map and resources. Kentucky wind map and resources. Tennessee wind map and resources. Mississippi wind map and resources. Alabama wind map and resources. Georgia wind map and resources. Florida wind map and resources. South Carolina wind map and resources. North Carolina wind map and resources. West Virginia wind map and resources. Virginia wind map and resources. Maryland wind map and resources. Pennsylvania wind map and resources. Delaware wind map and resources. New Jersey wind map and resources. New York wind map and resources. Maine wind map and resources. Vermont wind map and resources. New Hampshire wind map and resources. Massachusetts wind map and resources. Rhode Island wind map and resources. Connecticut wind map and resources. Alaska wind map and resources. Hawaii wind map and resources. Enlarge image

Download a printable U.S. map. Click on a state to view the wind map for that state. Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands do not have 80-meter height wind maps available but have 50-meter height wind maps. If you have a disability and need assistance reading the wind map, please email the webmaster.

About the 80-Meter Wind Resource Maps

The U.S. map shows the predicted mean annual wind speeds at an 80-m height, presented at a spatial resolution of 2.5 kilometers that is interpolated to a finer scale. Areas with annual average wind speeds around 6.5 meters per second and greater at an 80-m height are generally considered to have a wind resource suitable for wind development. Utility-scale, land-based wind turbines are typically installed between 80 and 100 m high.

In early 2010, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) completed a preliminary review and validation of AWS Truepower's 80-m height map estimates for 19 selected states (six Western states, six Midwestern states, and seven Eastern states) based on tower measurements at heights of about 50 m and above from more than 300 locations. The results of the validation showed that for most regions of the United States the wind resource estimates were well within 10%, which confirms that these wind resource maps are a valuable tool for wind energy prospecting.

More Information

Estimates of the wind resource potential that would be possible from development of the available windy land areas (after excluding areas unlikely to be developed) are provided in tables and charts.

Before you plan to install your own wind turbine or wind farm, you must know if the wind resource in your location is adequate. From wind resource maps, you can determine if your area of interest should be further explored. Wind resource at a micro level can vary significantly; therefore, you should get a professional evaluation of your specific area of interest.