The idea is to reduce the hurricane threat to the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GoM) coast by reducing the intrusion of the Loop Current (LC). This would reduce the pool of warm water retained inside the loop that can energize a hurricane (like Katrina) that might pass through the warm water. Floating marine current turbines would convert some of the hydraulic head driving the LC into useful electric power and dissipate the rest of the head in the drag of mooring cables, power cables, float, and underwater turbine structure. With less power available to overcome the turbulent friction dissipation of the LC, its length would be reduced and the LC intrusion into the GoM would be reduced. In the years that I have been working on this project, the details have changed but the basic parameters remain about the same.
We need to remove about 50 GW of hydraulic drive, which requires about 60,000 turbines with rotors 20 meters in diameter, suspended in pairs from 30,000 floats. At the present time, Florida Atlantic University has applied for a permit to conduct turbine experiments off of Fort Lauderdale. I'm sure they are not contemplating 30,000 floating units. Where can we put them? This many downstream from the GoM would impede the current flow and raise the sea level in the GoM. The only remaining location is in the Yucatan Channel between the Yucatan Peninsula and the hill of water that is always present along the coast of Cuba. This is where the approximately 25 million cubic meters per second of incoming water speeds up to go through this narrow passage. Turbines located here would remove hydraulic power and also create back pressure that would cause some water to divert around Cuba and enter the Florida Current without passing through the GoM.
I was sure that the turbine pairs could be spread out in the Yucatan Channel, Florida Straits, and Florida Current, but putting them all in Mexico's territorial waters off the Yucatan Peninsula requires some diplomacy and economic incentive. The electric power production might be intermittent, suitable for desalination with fresh water storage and transportation. There are lots of obstacles to overcome in this massive project, and it needs a much better oceanographic foundation than I have been able to provide. This has been a fascinating study and I think I am beginning to see how the hills of water passing into the GoM block the LC from going directly into the Florida Straits. When there is not enough power available to loop around the hill, its ridge sags and the LC starts to cut through the saddle point that forms. And I am learning how to translate tide gage readings into sea surface heights relevant to LC flow. But while this is all very interesting, the problem of drought is taking a greater toll than hurricanes, so I must get back to the rainmaking project.
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