An Astronomer’s Solution to Global Warming

[bananas]

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/An-Astronomers-Solution-to-Global-Warming.html



An Astronomer’s Solution to Global Warming

The technology developed for telescopes, it turns out, can
harness solar power

By Alaina G. Levine

Roger Angel is an astronomer whose innovative
designs for telescope mirrors have radically
transformed the way we see the stars and galaxies. He
developed lightweight, honeycombed mirrors for the
world’s largest and most powerful telescopes, including
the Large Binocular Telescope on Mount Graham in
Arizona and the Giant Magellan Telescope currently
under construction in Chile. He is a Regents Professor
and head of the Steward Observatory Mirror Lab at the
University of Arizona (UA), and a MacArthur “genius
grant” Fellow. In 2010 he won the prestigious Kavli
Prize for Astrophysics,. But lately he’s been thinking
more about life on our own planet.

<snip>

“The cells turn about 40 percent of the light into
electricity,” says Angel, noting this is highly efficient for
a solar power system. His innovation also contains a
cooling system using technology similar to that used
for computer chips and automobile engines. “This
allows the chips to stay remarkably cool: 20 degrees C
above the ambient air temperature,” he says. The
cooling system has the added benefit of not using any
water, a resource especially precious in the deserts
where many solar systems operate; recirculated
coolant is used instead.

<snip>

Alex Cronin, a physicist at the University of Arizona who conducts research independent of Angel
on PV solar cells, agrees. Angel “has optimized [this solar system] like a telescope,” Cronin says.
“This is an example of stretching the envelope in a new direction. He designed it with the least
amount of steel and iron. In the future we will see more of this. He’s leading the industry.”

<snip>

Angel was partly driven to develop solar power because of something he observed on Earth. His
home is near a river, and he has watched the waterway decline over time. “The water table has
gone down by three feet since I have been in the house,” he says. “The degradation of the river is
something I see real time in front of my eyes due to overpopulation. I’ve reconciled that my
beautiful river will dry up, but I don’t want to be reconciled to a planet that is doomed a miserable
fate like that.”


Via http://powerfromspace.blogspot.com/2012/02/astronomers-roger-angels-solution-to.html

[AnotherMcIntosh]

1. A technical innovation is a good start, but you need more.

As a practical matter, we live in a corrupt society where politicians act not out of the goodness of their hearts but when their actions financially benefit their donors (and perhaps themselves).

As just one example, we don't want war nor do we want to squander resources supporting the military-industrial complex, but that's what we've got. Now we have endless wars and endless profits for the MIC while large portions of our country are going bankrupt. Some politicans do a better job of acting than others, but the fact is that politicians, both R's and D's, knowingly authorize funds for the MIC while we have more people going hungry and living in poverty.

As another example, we don't want jobs to be shipped and maintained in foreign countries. This benefits the super-rich, not us. Yet, both R's and D's have supported this.

You want solar power?

It can work.

But only if you can first figure out how to give the politicians and their financial backers a piece of the action.

Corruption makes things happen.

Unless it can be figured out how to give them a piece of the action, the adoption of solar power to slow down global warming isn't going to happen.

[Fumesucker]

3. When the time has come for an idea sometimes all it's possible to do is get out of the way..

For the short and probably the medium term there won't be any one magic bullet energy source, energy will come from many diverse sources, one of which will be solar.

[FREEWILL56]

4. I wholeheartedly agree.

There won't be any single answer to energy, at least in our lifetimes. It will take quite an effort to supply our energy needs in the near future. What we really need more than other energy sources is to tone down our use of energy as we waste so much. This will not only save on the energy, but make our bills cheaper that in turn can go to even further efforts by funding solar, wind, biodiesel, etc. Yes, mad money too.

[The Croquist]

2. It's good to see Dr. Roger Angel back in the news.

I remember well a previous idea of his of stopping Global Warming by putting 100,000 square miles of mirrors into space. The article briefly mentioned that it turned out to be cost-prohibitive (like it takes a PHD to figure out that putting 100,000 square miles of mirrors in space might be cost-prohibitive).

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/globalwarming/4839985/Scientists-to-stop-global-warming-with-100000-square-mile-sun-shade.html

Now he's decided to focus sunlight. It's being done all over the world today.

When I read about his earlier plan back in 2009 I suggested that he consider a less expensive option. That option was to go across campus and move the USHCN and move the temperature sensor out off the parking lot and onto the lawn. My logic was that asphalt tended to be hotter then grass. I researched that by walking barefoot in the parking lot at Jones Beach LI, NY 40 years ago. I'm still waiting for a reply. I guess he's been busy.

http://gallery.surfacestations.org/main.php?g2_itemId=12970

[FREEWILL56]

5. Concentrated solar is nothing new.

There has been concentrated solar for a long time now, but one needs to track the sun to do it and the lifespan of the cells becomes very short lived. Another drawback is that part of the energy produced goes into cooling the cell making a 40% production back down to possibly in the 10-20% net region. It seems to be a bit of going forward 2 steps and being brought back a step.

As to the mirror idea, why mirrors? Do we need to reflect it to earth or block it from reaching us? You don't need a mirror to block it. In any case, it would require vast areas to be used in space to achieve it. Efforts here at home can have some effectiveness too like using light colored or white shingles on our homes as 1 example. There is a problem, regardless, as our society not only employs energy consuming vehicles that spew CO2, helping raise the temperature, but how about all of the concrete and asphalt being laid out that is absorbing great quantities of heat that may have otherwise gone back out into space much sooner and is causing a build up? We have countless millions of miles of roadways here in the states alone, while at the same time the vegetation that allowed cooling was removed for the roads' construction.

NO, it does not take a PHD to figure much of this out, but people are being purposely illiterate on some of these things. Some from being lazy and spoiled, which I can say we are all guilty to one degree or another, and some for greed.