As the consequences of burning fossil fuels become widely understood, societies worldwide are looking to renewable energy as a potential solution to the threat of climate change.

Wind power is one of the major renewable energy sources that helps to mitigate the amount of greenhouse gases.

Wind power uses the wind to sustainably generate electricity. Victoria currently has 44 operating wind projects, the most of any Australian state, and an additional 54 projects in the pipeline. They generated around 21% of Victoria’s electricity in 2023.

Note: This program is offered in Terms 3 and 4 only.

How can wind power be used as a renewable energy source?

In this program students will:

• Learn about how wind can be used as a renewable energy source.
• Understand the energy transformations that occur while generating wind power.
• Identify and measure experimental variables.
• Investigate how controlled experiments can improve efficiency when generating renewable energy.

In this program students will:

• Construct a model wind turbine.
• Use experimental design techniques to investigate how to best harness and store wind energy.
• Explore the pros and cons of using wind energy.

Note: Maximum number of students for this program is 50 per day

Science: Science Understanding

• The sustainable use of Earth’s resources is influenced by whether the resources are renewable or non-renewable; the processes involved in resource extraction and energy production come with both benefits and risks to sustainability (VC2S8U09)

Science: Science Inquiry

• Reproducible investigations to answer questions and test hypotheses can be planned and conducted, including identifying independent, dependent and controlled variables where applicable, stating assumptions, recognising and managing risks, considering ethical issues and following protocols when accessing cultural sites and artefacts on Country and Place (VC2S8102)
• Equipment can be selected and used to generate and record data with attention to precision, using digital tools as appropriate (VC2S8I03)
• Data and information can be organised and processed by selecting and constructing representations including tables, graphs, keys, models and mathematical relationships (VC2S8I04)
• Scientific methods, conclusions and claims can be analysed to identify assumptions, possible sources of error, conflicting evidence and unanswered questions (VC2S8I06)