These are the Morons Who are Running Climate with Our Government

[djd09]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1937842926526099807

...

 

[Digger88]

I think I'm coming around on solar. *waiting for Terrel to chastise me lol

Once storage becomes an economic reality it would seem a huge farm in the desert free from damaging storms could be a viable solution. And I am definitely see solar on more houses than ever in MD & DC though I think those are partially/heavily subsidized.

From Grok3

Why Solar Power Could Dominate by 2050
The article posits that solar power is poised to become the dominant global energy source by 2050, driven by a combination of rapid growth, technological advancements, and economic trends. Solar energy production has surged from 100 terawatt-hours (TWh) to 2,000 TWh in just over a decade, marking it as the fastest-growing electricity source in history. This trajectory is underpinned by Swanson's Law, which states that solar panel costs drop by approximately 20% for every doubling of installed capacity, a trend that has held steady as capacity grew from 100 gigawatts in 2012 to over 1,400 gigawatts by 2024. Additionally, the Shockley-Queisser limit, the theoretical maximum efficiency for single-junction solar cells at 33.7%, guides ongoing improvements, with current panels achieving 15-22% efficiency and incremental gains of 0.5-1% annually. Solar's scalability and modularity allow it to be deployed flexibly—on rooftops, in deserts, or over reservoirs—without the massive infrastructure or long lead times required by nuclear or hydroelectric plants. Advances in energy storage, such as plummeting battery costs (down 85% since 2010) and smart grid technologies, mitigate solar's intermittency, while innovations like tandem solar cells (exceeding 30% efficiency) and bifacial panels (boosting yield by 10-20%) promise to make these projections conservative. Geopolitically, solar offers energy independence, free from fossil fuel volatility, positioning it as a decentralized and stable alternative.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1939683254761595082

 

[djd09]

1 hurt in windmill blade incident on Maryland highway

WASHINGTON COUNTY, Md. (WDCW) — A windmill turbine blade became loose Monday morning, crossing the median on Interstate 70 in Maryland and causing traffic to be backed up for several miles.

According to Maryland State Police (MSP), troopers responded to I-70 West, near Interstate 81, just after 5 a.m. There, they learned that a tractor-trailer had been hauling a windmill blade west on I-70 when the blade became loose.

The blade then ended up across the center median, blocking the eastbound lanes, according to state police.

... is it really worth it?


Report

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

the dominant global energy source by 2050

Unreliable. First, it works half the day on average over a year and is low input mornings and afternoons. Second, it can only work at night with storage. Next, these farms are huge and to do as much as half the energy we will need, will necessarily cover hundreds of square miles. So, where will they be built? Certainly not in the cities that consume the electricity. Nor will they cover government lands, mountains, oil fields, mines, subdivisions, so where? Where else? Millions upon millions of acres of farm and ranch land, the very breadbasket of the nation. So, I guess we won't starve in the dark at least, just starve. Fourth. By covering acres upon acres, we reduce the ability of vegetation to generate oxygen and consume CO2. So, we actually would create more CO2 with solar panels than we would as open spaces. Storage would consume all the resources 10x over what we need today.

Energy density - Watch this video. When you see the requirement of

 

[Sid Holderly]

They do not think past the project they are on. They reduced sulfur emissions from coal fired boilers, now farmers have to add sulfur to their fertilizer to get good crop yields. Corn used CO2 for photosynthesis. Do you want local food to eat or do you want to buy it from where they do not control bad emissions. It is all connected stopping caused problems with something else.

 

[Digger88]

Unreliable. First, it works half the day on average over a year and is low input mornings and afternoons. Second, it can only work at night with storage. Next, these farms are huge and to do as much as half the energy we will need, will necessarily cover hundreds of square miles. So, where will they be built? Certainly not in the cities that consume the electricity. Nor will they cover government lands, mountains, oil fields, mines, subdivisions, so where? Where else? Millions upon millions of acres of farm and ranch land, the very breadbasket of the nation. So, I guess we won't starve in the dark at least, just starve. Fourth. By covering acres upon acres, we reduce the ability of vegetation to generate oxygen and consume CO2. So, we actually would create more CO2 with solar panels than we would as open spaces. Storage would consume all the resources 10x over what we need today.
View attachment 101372
Energy density - Watch this video. When you see the requirement of

I know you are the board expert on energy and I didn't write that I thought it would be the dominant energy by 2050 I am just taking in from all sides in areas I'm not well versed in. What would be the issue in sticking giant farms in the south western desert? Nothing but heat and no real damaging storms once they get energy storage figured out it seems like a decent player in the overall energy production sector.

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

What would be the issue in sticking giant farms in the south western desert? Nothing but heat and no real damaging storms

I take it you've not spent much time in the SW... Earthquakes are not uncommon. Tornados hit the front range often. And the desert is often quite fragile environmentally. Huge hail storms occur occasionally some with hail so large it killed antelope. Yes, it generates more energy but also loses a lot of that energy just transporting to the places where it can be used. And that brings up the issue of more and more power lines which necessarily will cross cropland, homes, ranches, and present environmental issues all their own. And again, this involves millions of acres whether a wind farm or a solar farm. Natural gas OTOH can build smaller, more cost effective power plants close to the places that need the power, but the reality is the only true low-carbon footprint is going to be nuclear power.
PS - I've been in 4 such haboobs, 2 in the OK panhandle and 2 in western Colorado.

 

[Fernando]

There's no climate change.
When Fernando says so, there's no climate change.

 

[Dublin ohio]

What would be the issue in sticking giant farms in the south western desert?

Heat. Solar panels are tested for peak efficiency at 77 deg F (25 deg C) operating temperature. That is not ambient temperature because they also generate their own heat. For every degree above 25 C they lose 0.5% in efficiency

 

[Terrel L. Shields]

Climate Discussion Nexus said

At CDN we’re old enough to remember that summer has always been the hot season in the Northern Hemisphere. And that journalists used to know this. For instance a writer in Chronicles magazine in February 1991, commenting on growing public disorder, observed that “In the 1920’s and 1930’s, many families habitually slept in Central Park on hot summer nights, even at the Harlem end.” Today it’s “Dangerous heat dome scorches millions of Americans” and the map is red, dark red and very dark red. The temperatures are the same, of course. But now “Americans are roasting” as the rhetorical flames leap upward.​

​

Exactly. My parents had no AC for years even though my dad worked nights and slept days. One summer hauling hay on the 4th of July, it hit 104. This was early 70s. I recall my partner in the hay truck sitting on the end of the bale elevator hanging out over space when we took a break and sweat was dripping off his pant seat. It was very humid, and we could see thunderheads miles away but no relief for us. In 72 we worked in E. Kansas most of July as it had quit raining at home and there were no hay cutters cutting. We hauled prairie hay and alfalfa. It was almost 100 every day and over 100 many days. We hauled 10,000 bales in about 2 weeks, 700-1000 per day, just the 2 of us. No days off. We took a 2 hour break about 2-4pm and worked from early until dark. In 1980, my house had no AC, but fans moved air thru the house and was reasonable at night. We had no rain from June to September, and it hit 100 more days than not.

Everyone is complaining about the heat but it's actually a cool summer by my measure. I know the west is hot and dry but east of the Rockies, it's been raining a lot. I am mowing every 5-6 days, mowed today. In 1980, there was nothing to mow after July 1st. Universal AC now made pansies out of us all. AC in car 50 years ago was rare. Window air dominated even new housing until the 70s and I have appraised new homes with window AC as late as the mid-90s. I remember when only a few big grocery stores were air-conditioned, hardly any other building has AC except maybe the doctor or dentist.