kirsten vanstone's List: Tidal Energy

• Tidal energy is energy that could be obtained from the  changing sea levels. In other words, tidal energy is a direct result of tide  shifting from low to high.
• only uses the energy from the changing of the tides instead of burning or  consuming any form of energy source. It is also considered to be inexhaustible  because tides always rise and fall due to gravity.
• tidal power does not depend on the season or the weather type. Instead, tidal  energy relies purely on the orbital kinetic energy that the sun exerts as the  earth orbits around it. The same goes with the moon and earth orbital system. As  the moon orbits around the earth, a gravitational force is experienced by both  bodies.
• How Tidal Energy Works
• only be harnessed in places with significant water level changes.
• potential energy that the tides will hold shows figures that are more or less  80%. This means that 20% of total potential energy is usually lost and only 80%  of potential energy is typically utilized for electricity generation.

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• • read the Blue Print chapter and look under pros and cons
• Read the Blueprint Chapter on ocean power

• • tidal energy
• The term “ocean energy” is used to describe the harnessing of power  found in ocean waves, tidal flows, and salinity and temperature  gradients.

• Wave energy can be considered a  concentrated form of solar energy.  The sun's radiation heats the surface  of the ocean creating wind, which in turn creates waves.  Regions  considered to have “good” wave energy resources are generally those found within  40 to 60 degrees of latitude, where the strongest winds are found.  The  largest waves are formed in regions where the wind blows over the water the  furthest, the longest "fetch", often the west coasts of continents.
• numerous methods of harnessing wave and tidal energy that are currently under  various stages of R&D and demonstration

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• The relatively constant flow of the ocean currents carries large  amounts of energy that can be captured and converted to a usable form.
• Ocean waters are constantly on the move. Ocean currents flow in  complex patterns affected by the wind, water salinity and temperature,  topography of the ocean floor, and the earth's rotation. The ocean currents are  driven by wind and solar heating of the waters near the equator, though some  ocean currents result from density and salinity variations of water. These  currents are relatively constant and flow in one direction only, in contrast to  the tidal currents closer to shore. Some examples of ocean currents are the Gulf  Stream, Florida Straits Current, and California Current.
• Technical Challenges
• Environmental Considerations

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