January 24, 2011
The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Commerce today announced a new agreement to further collaboration between the agencies on renewable energy modeling and weather forecasting, which will help enable the nation's renewable energy resources to be used more effectively by business and entrepreneurs. The Memorandum of Understanding signed by Acting Under Secretary of Energy Cathy Zoi and Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., will encourage the two agencies to work together to develop and disseminate weather and climate information needed for renewable energy technologies that are dependent on short-term weather and longer-term climate trends. Better information on weather patterns and improved modeling of the variability of the wind, sun, water, ocean currents, and other sources of renewable energy will ultimately increase the country's ability to efficiently and reliably integrate renewable energy into the electrical grid.
The partnership will help renewable energy system designers, operators, and electric power system administrators in improving the cost effectiveness and reliability of weather-dependent renewable energy technologies. The collaboration includes a working group from DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that will identify areas for continued focus and research and help lay out next steps for improving the efficiency of renewable resources and better integrating renewable energy sources onto the electrical grid.
The group will produce an Action Plan in the coming months that will address:
- Improving renewable resource characterization models and methodologies for optimizing system reliability and performance
- Advancing meteorological and oceanic forecasting technologies, models and methodologies
- Defining national weather and oceanic monitoring systems needed to support renewable energy
- Predicting climate effects on renewable energy resources
- Coordinating both public and private sector contributions to addressing renewable resource needs.
Under the partnership, both agencies agree to provide the necessary resources to coordinate or carry out the designated tasks outlined in the Action Plan.
To learn more about wind as a renewable energy source, please visit DOE's Wind Program website.
Read more on NOAA's renewable energy program.
Weather forecasting seems to be an application of interest for venture funding. Weatherbill, a weather insurance company founded by a couple of early-stage Google employees. The company has been moving along well, and just received $42 million in funding from Khosla Ventures and Google Ventures.
ReplyDeleteWeatherbill takes decades of data from the US Geological Survey on temperature and precipitation across the US, and insures weather-dependent businesses (farmers, housepainters, golf ranges – anyone involved in the outdoors). Over the past two years Weatherbill has focused on agriculture, a large single market that it could target. “It had the most significant opportunity, the most significant product, and had the greatest impact,” said cofounder David Friedberg.
Weather forecasts also could be used as a smart energy application to optimize thermostat settings.