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Climate model shows large-scale wind and solar farms in the Sahara increase rain and vegetationTitleClimate model shows large-scale wind and solar farms in the Sahara increase rain and vegetation Author Year of publication2018 Source Science Magazine ; Vol. 361 ; no. 6406 (7 September 2018), p.1019-1022 Materialarticle Abstract Energy generation by wind and solar farms could reduce carbon emissions and thus mitigate anthropogenic climate change. But is this its only benefit? Li et al. conducted experiments using a climate model to show that the installation of large-scale wind and solar power generation facilities in the Sahara could cause more local rainfall, particularly in the neighboring Sahel region. This effect, caused by a combination of increased surface drag and reduced albedo, could increase coverage by vegetation, creating a positive feedback that would further increase rainfall.
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