ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Pelton wheel

Have you ever played with water coming from a garden hose? Imagine if you could use that water to make some machines work, like a wheel that can spin and produce power. A Pelton wheel is just like that, a machine that uses the power of falling water to generate energy.

The Pelton wheel is made up of a big metal wheel with buckets or cups attached all around it. When water falls from a height, it's directed to these cups or buckets, and the force of the falling water makes the wheel spin around rapidly. The spinning motion of the wheel is then used to turn generators that produce electricity.

The most important part of the Pelton wheel is the special shape of the cups or buckets. They are designed to capture the energy of the water and use it to spin the wheel. The cups or buckets are shaped like spoons, with curved edges that scoop the water and direct it towards the center of the wheel. This way, the water hits the wheel with a lot of force, and it spins around and around.

Pelton wheels are often used in places where there's a lot of falling water, like in hydroelectric power plants. These plants use the power of falling water to generate electricity, and Pelton wheels are an important part of making that happen. Overall, Pelton wheels are a creative way to take something as simple as falling water and use it to produce energy that can be used in many different ways!
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