Buffalo Ridge
 | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (August 2019) |
Buffalo Ridge is a large expanse of rolling hills in the southeastern part of the larger Coteau des Prairies. It stands 1,995 feet (608 m) above sea level. The Buffalo Ridge is sixty miles (97 km) long and runs through Lincoln, Pipestone, Murray, Nobles, and Rock counties in the southwest corner of Minnesota, and Minnehaha, Moody, and Lincoln counties in southeast South Dakota.
Because of its altitude and high average wind speed, Buffalo Ridge has been transformed into a place for creating renewable energy. As of May 2022, over 1,000 wind turbines stand in the Buffalo Ridge area.[1]
Geology
Buffalo Ridge is on a
.Buffalo Ridge is part of the inner
Climate
Buffalo Ridge has a midlatitude continental climate with an average 24 to 27 inches (61 to 69 cm) of precipitation per year and 36 to 40 inches (91 to 101 cm) of snowfall per winter. The average spring thaw is around April 5 and the spring green-up generally occurs between May 1 and May 10. Peak fall colors usually occur around October 20 and there are generally 40 to 50 thunderstorm days per year.[6]
Chandler–Lake Wilson, Minnesota F5 tornado of 1992
On June 16, intense storms struck
Geography
Before the settlers arrived and developed the towns on and surrounding Buffalo Ridge, the Dakota Native Americans inhabited the area. They, and other tribes before them, created intricate pipes out of the claystone called "Catlinite" in the Buffalo Ridge area, which are displayed at Pipestone National Monument. Native Americans from around the country still quarry this stone for pipe-making today.
Most of the land on Buffalo Ridge is privately-owned farmland.
Hole in the Mountain Prairie
Wind farms
A number of
43°58′49″N 96°00′38″W / 43.9802442°N 96.0105766°W[8]
See also
- List of large wind farms
- Wind power in the United States
References
- ^ "Radware Bot Manager Captcha". www.mndor.state.mn.us. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Nobles Map". Wgtn.net. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011.
- ^ a b c DNR, Minnesota DNR, http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/ecs/251Bc/index.html.
- ^ Anderson RR (1987) Precambrian Sioux Quartzite at Gitchie Manitou State Preserve, Iowa. Centennial Field Guide Volume 3: North-Central Section of the Geological Society of America: Vol. 3, No. 0 pp. 77–80. http://www.gsajournals.org/perlserv/?request=res-loc&uri=urn%3Aap%3Apdf%3Adoi%3A10.1130%2F0-8137-5403-8.77
- ^ USGS, Northern Prairie Research Center, "NPWRC :: Regional Landscape". Archived from the original on September 29, 2006. Retrieved April 27, 2007..
- ^ Paul Douglas, "Prairie Skies" (Voyager Press Inc., 1990)
- ^ Nature Conservancy, Hole-in-the-Mountain Prairie Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Buffalo Ridge
Works cited
- "Buffalo Ridge Wind Towers". Hendricks, Minnesota. 2004. Archived from the original on April 16, 2007. Retrieved April 22, 2007..
- Dieter, Charles; Higgins, Kenneth; Osbourn, Robert; Usgaard, Richard (January 1998). "Bird Flight Characteristics Near Wind Turbines in Minnesota". The American Midland Naturalist. 139: 29–38. S2CID 86144416. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- Douglas, Paul (1990). Prairie Skies: The Minnesota Weather Book. Voyageur Press Inc.
- Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center (August 3, 2006). "Regional Landscape Ecosystems of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin". USGS. Archived from the original on September 29, 2006. Retrieved April 22, 2007.
- Peterson, Dean; Richter, Gary (1994). Buffalo Ridge Tornado June 16, 1992. Walsworth Publ.
- The City of Lake Benton, Minnesota. "Wind Power on the Buffalo Ridge". Retrieved August 28, 2019.
