A nacelle is a cover
housing
Housing, or more generally, living spaces, refers to the construction and assigned usage of houses or buildings individually or collectively, for the purpose of shelter. Housing ensures that members of society have a place to live, whether i ...
that houses all of the generating components in a
wind turbine
A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each yea ...
, including the
generator,
gearbox
Propulsion transmission is the mode of transmitting and controlling propulsion power of a machine. The term ''transmission'' properly refers to the whole drivetrain, including clutch, gearbox, prop shaft (for rear-wheel drive vehicles), differe ...
,
drive train
A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...
, and brake assembly.
A notable feature now found on some
off-shore wind turbines is a large sturdy helicopter-hoisting platform built on top of the nacelle, capable of supporting service personnel and their tools, winched down to the platform from a helicopter hovering above it.
[Eize de Vries]
Close up: Alstom Haliade 6MW Prototype
''Windpower Monthly'', 11 July 2012. Wind turbine rotors are stopped, feathered and locked before personnel are dropped down to or picked up from the platforms.
References
Wind turbines
{{Windpower-stub