Thirty Years On, How Well Do Global Warming Predictions Stand Up?

[Rajoo]

Where is the Sharpie to deflect the course of this storm?

[whell]

Originally Posted by Chicks

US installs record solar capacity as prices keep falling
It's often cheaper to build and run solar than to buy gas for an existing plant.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2022...-keep-falling/



This must drive the MAGAMorons crazy, lol.

Why would it? I can see where solar installs would be helpful in a state like Texas. Michigan, with less sun on average and more could cover than average, not so much.

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

Why would it? I can see where solar installs would be helpful in a state like Texas. Michigan, with less sun on average and more could cover than average, not so much.

Germany, which is both further north and cloudier than Michigan (not to mention with far less open space), gets 8.2% of its electricity from solar.

[whell]

Originally Posted by finnbow

Germany, which is both further north and cloudier than Michigan (not to mention with far less open space), gets 8.2% of its electricity from solar.

Good for Germany.

My point was, when compared to TX, MI is likely a better candidate for investment in other sources of renewable energy. Wind turbines have been sprouting faster than mushrooms in MI, for example. That may change due to some recent tech developments that make the two sources more equivalent in cost, but that may still be a few years away.

[Oerets]

""Solar Power Is Helping Some Puerto Rico Homes Avoid Hurricane Fiona Blackouts""




“Hurricane Fiona is just one more example of the urgency needed to transition to an electrical system that’s resilient and provides people what they need, which is rooftop solar and storage,” says Cathy Kunkel, an energy program manager at San Juan-based sustainability nonprofit Cambio PR. “Puerto Rico needs something that’s not going to go out every time a major storm hits, because we’re just getting more and more of them.”

https://dnyuz.com/2022/09/20/solar-p...ona-blackouts/



Someday there will be no other choice then going renewable. We have already gone way beyond the point of no return on preventing drastic changes. Survival mode will soon become apparent.

Then the blaming pointing fingers....... At those on the wrong side of history.

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

Good for Germany.

My point was, when compared to TX, MI is likely a better candidate for investment in other sources of renewable energy. Wind turbines have been sprouting faster than mushrooms in MI, for example. That may change due to some recent tech developments that make the two sources more equivalent in cost, but that may still be a few years away.

The best renewable system is not an either/or, it's both. Here's Germany's breakdown which results in ~50% coming from renewable energy.

[whell]

Originally Posted by finnbow

The best renewable system is not an either/or, it's both. Here's Germany's breakdown which results in ~50% coming from renewable energy.

No doubt. When planning where an area will generate power for the grid, the planners will play to the area's geological and geographic strengths. I suspect there are parts of Germany where one generating strategy has more economic and output benefits than others.

At present, Mi gets most of it's electric capacity from nuclear. MI retired it's aging coal fired plants. That capacity was replaced by natural gas and wind, because that's what made the most sense for the generating potential per dollar. Solar will be in the state's future when the benefits of solar make more economic sense than other renewable sources.

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

No doubt. When planning where an area will generate power for the grid, the planners will play to the area's geological and geographic strengths. I suspect there are parts of Germany where one generating strategy has more economic and output benefits than others.

At present, Mi gets most of it's electric capacity from nuclear. MI retired it's aging coal fired plants. That capacity was replaced by natural gas and wind, because that's what made the most sense for the generating potential per dollar. Solar will be in the state's future when the benefits of solar make more economic sense than other renewable sources.

Agree (see, we can actually agree on something), though I'm a bit puzzled by you buying into plans that contradict your oft-stated climate change skepticism. That said, photovoltaic solar panels continue to get cheaper and more efficient and, unlike wind turbines, don't require much, if any, preventive maintenance and will likely continue to increase their market share in the future.

[Chicks]

Is Whell actually evolving!? His MAGAMoron pals are running around cutting cords off EV recharging stations and blocking them with their huge, gross-polluting diesel pickup trucks.

[whell]

Originally Posted by finnbow

Agree (see, we can actually agree on something), though I'm a bit puzzled by you buying into plans that contradict your oft-stated climate change skepticism. That said, photovoltaic solar panels continue to get cheaper and more efficient and, unlike wind turbines, don't require much, if any, preventive maintenance and will likely continue to increase their market share in the future.

I'm not sure why you see that as an inconsistency. If we can make the grid less reliant on more costly, less efficient energy sources, I'm all for it. I'm not a fan of wind turbines: they're a damn eye sore. So, if solar can be made cost competitive in the long term, that's great.

If solar is less costly because we're sourcing solar cells from China, that's not so great. We need to be able to cost-effectively produce them domestically. The manufacturing capacity of competitively priced solar is ramping up, so keep your fingers crossed.