One of the more common turbine variants is the vertical-axis turbine. The particular turbine pictured above generated 4 megawatts of power until it was decommissioned in 1993.
Vertical-axis turbines have many advantages over horizontal ones. Chiefly, the turbine is omnidirectional, which means it doesn't have to rotate to track the wind. This makes vertical-axis turbines simpler and more effective in chaotic wind environments. Other advantages include placing the generator and gearbox at ground level for easier maintenance, and a smaller width allows turbines to be placed closer together.
But it has some disadvantage of its own, specifically that they're not very durable. Vertical-axis turbines experience substantial stress because of the uneven forces exerted on them, and this can cause them to fail sooner than your normal windmill. Still, vertical-axis turbines fill a useful niche, and there are many varying designs still in use.
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