The world’s largest offshore wind farm is taking shape off the east coast of Britain, a landmark project that demonstrates one way to combat climate change at scale.
Located 120 kilometers (75 miles) off England’s Yorkshire coast, Hornsea One will produce enough energy to supply 1 million UK homes with clean electricity when it is completed in 2020, according to CNN.
The project spans an area that’s bigger than the Maldives or Malta, and is located farther out to see than any other wind farm. It consists of 174 seven-megawatt wind turbines that are each 100 meters tall. The blades have a circumference of 75 meters, and cover an area bigger than the London Eye observation wheel as they turn.
Just a single rotation of one of the turbines can power the average home for an entire day, according to Stefan Hoonings, senior project manager at Orsted (DOGEF), the Danish energy company that built the farm.
The project will take the United Kingdom closer to hitting its target of deriving a third of the country’s electricity from offshore wind by 2030.