This study utilized a 37-year (1980–2016) 10 m wind field dataset derived from the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMWF) to analyze the renewable energy potentials of the Caribbean Sea (CS) with special attention on the distribution and spatio-temporal trends of wind power density by using the Weibull parameters. The computed annual average wind power (233.7 W/m2) attributes the region as good for wind power applications. Regions such as the Central CS and south Caribbean coast exhibit higher wind power between 350 W/m2 and 550 W/m2 and are therefore locations suitable for wind power applications. In an annual and seasonal spatial trend analysis, increasing positive trends in wind power occurred in most parts of the northern CS and in sporadic waters of the southern CS such as Gulf of Guna Yala and some regions in the Pacific, while negative trends dominate the rest of the waters of the CS. The annual and seasonal temporal trend analysis revealed that the wind power exhibited decreasing trends of -0.5182 W/m2 yr-1, -0.0057 W/m2 yr-1 and -0.893 W/m2 yr-1 respectively for the years, the dry and wet seasons.
Key words: wind power, weibull, trends, potentials, region, variation, distribution
