Owl wing design to quiet turbines

A new material that could make wind turbines and even aircraft quieter by mimicking the design of owls’ wings that allows them to silently hunt their prey has been developed by scientists.

The Cambridge University-led Anglo-American team studied the feathers of the nocturnal airborne predators to produce the coating, and was unveiled at a US conference.

Because of the noise they make, wind turbines are often braked to make them turn more slowly and quietly, but the team behind the new material say that it could enable the machines to turn faster and boost their output without increasing noise as a side-effect.