Solar energy is only generated while the sun is up, and wind energy while the wind is blowing. But power grids need to respond to demand whenever it occurs. If we ever want a power grid that relies on solar and wind energy, we’ll need to come up with ways to store them. A Vox video by Sam Ellis.
More:
“A mountain, a tower, a thermos of molten salt. These are the batteries that could power our renewable future.” Neel Dhanesha, Vox
In 1976, a watt of energy generated by solar photovoltaic cost over $100. In 2019, it was less than 50 cents per watt, a price decline of 99.6%. Even since 2009, solar has declined 90% in price. What’s behind that drop? Industry helped, but the main driver was government policy and subsidy of solar by countries like the US, Japan, Germany, and China.
______________ Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-Do6 Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.
“Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has called on workers in the public and private sector to stop wearing ties, as an energy saving measure in the heat.
Mr Sanchez said his government will adopt ‘urgent’ energy-saving measures on Monday as European countries strive to become less dependent on Russian gas in the wake of the war in Ukraine.
On Friday, temperatures reached 36C (96.8 F) in Madrid and 39C [102.2 F ] in Seville.”
— “Spain heatwave: PM tells workers to stop wearing ties to save energy,” Malu Cursino, BBC News
Logically, you’d think that neckties should be compulsory in winter to save heating, but they’re bad for your brain. Throw the damn things out and wear a muffler this December.
The US isn’t ready for renewable energy. The electric transmission grid doesn’t have the capacity to move it where it needs to be. A vox video by Madeline Marshall, animated by Matt Dunne.
Related:
“Old Power Gear Is Slowing Use of Clean Energy and Electric Cars,” Ivan Penn, New York Times
“2020 was the worst year yet for power outages in the US,” Justine Calma, The Verge
The Indian Point nuclear plant, on the Hudson River 30 miles north of Manhattan, shut down recently. Cleo Abram takes a closer and explains why so many nuclear plants are shutting down.
“Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) was widely mocked and criticized for having suggested Jewish-run space lasers might be responsible for California’s wildfires. But it turns out the technology she flagged — orbiting panels that beam solar energy to Earth — does exist, at least in prototype form, CNN reports. Only instead of the Rothschilds, the Pentagon controls the technology, and instead of destroying California’s forests and homes, Photovoltaic Radiofrequency Antenna Modules (PRAMs) could provide emergency power during natural disasters.”
— “U.S. scientists have shown it’s plausible to power the Earth from solar panels in space,” Peter Weber, The Week
NotionsCapital 