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Alanson 2 year s ago
#4 looks like the island got some morning wood mocking
       
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Elswood 2 year s ago
#9 hurt my brain man_in_l
       
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Jean 2 year s ago
#37 If that's true, then why isn't the UN working on this? clapping
       
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Eliphalet 2 year s ago
Jean,

it's only true half way:
Conventional solar panels and the inverters don't like heat over 65° C.
So, just with the "old school" Silicium panels, we would have a blackout in the mid time, when the sun is shining most.

They are experimenting with molten salt and Stirling engines to gain more energy.

Next thing is: The Sahara goes only over two times zones, so we have to store the electricity when it's night there.
A world wide spread around the globe would make it easyier.

There are violent sand stormes in the Sahara, that can take the paint from a car, it takes a lot of protection measures to protect the modules, not only against grinding, but also not just being buried.

And last but not least: The Sahara has six or seven different countries with different political structures. It's not the job of the UN or any "World Police Governement" (that fought alrady more than a dozen of wars for energy) to install something there.
       
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Cole 2 year s ago
Eliphalet, more raisonnable in what you are saying than just say that 1.2% and bla bla bla. so much cons than pros that is kind useless this thing about 1.2%...
       
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Eliphalet 2 year s ago
Cole,

absolutely.
My opinion is, that rural areas should be provided worldwide with decentral small wind and solar power sources. Depending on the geography maybe earth heat or water energy.
Maybe accumulators for a week or so.
This would be a usage for "worn out" electric car batteries with a capacity of less than 50%.

Of course are all these private power stations connected to a power net, so the cities get their electricity from them. And noone has a blackout, when there are some windless nights.

Would be an income for the private owners.

Of course, the power net provider will charge a fee for using their lines, but that can't be so high - the infrastructure mostly exists already.

And well, if a windmill burns or a bird poops on a solar panel, that wouldn't be so bad, as talking about Fukushima-Daichii, Chernobyl, the atomic waste, that has to be stored for 1'000'000 years (humanity exists since ca. 40'000 years) or the smog from coal power stations.

but here in Germany, they made e.g. a law, that gives you money for the electricity from your solar panels.
But the rates lower each year, so, if someone reinvests in newer and better solar panels, he gets less money.
It's forbidden, to connect your private electric installation with the solar panels.
It's forbidden to store energy, so the panel "pump" the electricity into the net, if there is a need or not...

That's because 5 big companies fear for their income from their power stations.
       
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Cecilia 2 year s ago
I have serious concerns that the energy needs of the modern world cannot be met through wind and solar, and that only nuclear power can feasibly provide what we need within the foreseeable future.

Shut down all your coal-burning and nuclear plants, end fracking for natural gas, then add up the energy potentially available from wind, solar, and hydro, and given the formidable inability to store that energy, it seems like we're heading for a real disaster in the not so distant future. This seems like mass hysteria and science denial in pursuit of a noble, but naïve goal.
       
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Eliphalet 2 year s ago
Cecilia,

I would accept your idea with pleasure (at least the shutdown)

Let's look to Japan:
After the Fukushima-Daichii desaster were all atomic power stations shut down.
No one had a blackout.
The only reason, why they restarted some plants was to finance the Fukushima-Daichii disaster.
Next year, the tanks are so full, that they will release contaminated (and a little bit filtered) water in the Pacific Ocean. Just remember, that it took 8½ months for some ghost ships to reach the US coast after the Tsunami.

In Europe, Norway (not a single atomic plant) and Germany (shutting down until 2022) are already connected via a 1,4 TW cable. That's not much, I know, but it's a beginning.
Norway can store energy by pumping water in higher seas and releasing it in hydro energy.
Switzerland can do the same (I know, they still run the pumps with atomic electricity) Due to the global warming, they are loosing the snow from the mountains.

I'm living at the German Danish border.
The German windmills get money, if they stop, when there is too much electricity from atomic plants. Because they can't react really fast, the atomic plants have priority.
It's funny to see: The Danish windmills (also connected to Norway) work and some miles (in my area 5 km) more in the south, the Germans windmills have their brakes locked. It's clear to say, that they have the same wind.

Not so funny: Because they mustn't power the net, that counts as "no wind energgy available" in the statistic. And because the statistic says often "no wind energgy available", they keep a low priority.

Let's look at the money:
It costs about 5'000 Mio $ (sorry, I don't want the Billion - Milliarde discussion here) just to set up a atomic power plant before it works.
During the life time (something between 40 and 50 years) it has to gain not only the building and running costs, it has to gain also the costs for storing the waste for about 1'000'000 years.
Just to compare :
The humanity exists since ca. 40'000 years
The longest existing culture (Egypt) exists since ca. 7'000 years.
America was discovered 529 years ago (or 1'000 years ago by the Vikings)
The United States exist since 242 years.

so, noone knows, how the atomic waste will be handled in 10'000 years.

And no, I accept Fusion reactors for recycling as an argument, if they really work and exist.

Btw, that's the reason, why they set up that Sahara project:
It's an area with no Lobby for atomic energy and not interesting for the US to invade
       
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Sly 2 year s ago
Cole,

So maybe just take the knowledge that the sun, already giving life to nearly every living thing on the planet, can also give us electricity, as soon as our technology improves.
       
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Shaina 2 year s ago
Eliphalet,
Solar panels in the desert tend to get covered in dust, and need to be washed on occasion.
       
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Anthony 2 year s ago
#37 Its not the generation of the power that's the issue, its storing it.
       
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Pasoonie 2 year s ago
Anthony,
And delivery to remote areas.
       
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Sly 2 year s ago
#48 - And still they're blocking the fast lane.
       
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Cene 2 year s ago
Sly,

Really have to plan to get to the off ramp
       
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Ote 2 year s ago
dammit jesus.
       
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