OT sun and wind question

[whisky-dave]

So why do some greenies want massive car parks ;-)

[Andrew May]

Extracting energy from the tides doesn't stop the tides. At most it delays their effects for six hours within part of the system.

[harryagain]

The total amount of energy falling on the earth would still be the same. The only thing that makes any difference is "albedo" ie clouds, snow and ice reflecting heat back into space. I suppose theoretically, cloud formation could be somehow affected. More clouds would reflect more enrgy back into space.

It is theorised that if the polar ice was to melt, more heat would be absorbed by the Earth, so giving a runaway heating effect.

[harryagain]

Is that so?

More bollocks fromTurNiP

[polygonum]

More bollocks from harry. Someone might very well have calculated as TNP posted. Doesn't mean either that it is true, nor that TNP believed it.

[The Medway Handyman]

Rather have a Numatic one....

[The Natural Philosopher]

It has also been hypothesised that a hotter earth with melting poles would generate more water voupur, leading to more clouds and an overall cooling effect.

Fortunately, Antarctica is getting colder and icier every year.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Yes harry, that is so.,

[The Natural Philosopher]

undeed. the key issues was 'if population continues to rise atcurrent rates'

But harry is so worried that people will recognise renewable energy for the fraud that it s, that he has to attack using the wrong methodology.

[Dave Liquorice]

Tidal power relies on the water moving. If the water isn't moving you can't extract any energy from it.

[newshound]

Good point. Also you won't produce as much of the salt microcrystals which I think are reckoned to be important nucleation sites for clouds. So, fewer clouds, the less solar heat is directly reflected

[Brian Gaff]

It has already been observed than wind turbines create wind shadows and some turbulence, so I'd imagine eventually it would affect climate. Also changing the reflective of vast areas of the planet are going to change the climate. Depending on the efficiency of each device I suppose you can get serious changes, after all the climate is changing locally in cities etc merely by there being building there.

There is nothing unconnected. At the moment as has been noted in a Nature article, woodland species are able to take up more co2 while losing less water through their leaves due to the greater amount of it in the air, so maybe one way to go is to attempt to breed trees that use the same amount of water but instead fix more of the co2 and release more oxygen. Brian

[Nightjar]

I pass a large array in a field from time to time. The panels have to be spaced some distance apart to avoid being in the shadow of other panels and sheep graze the grass between them.

Colin Bignell

[Paul Herber]

Sticking big lumps of land all over the oceans probably seemed like a bad idea a few billion years ago ...

[Vir Campestris]

You don't need to bring it to a standstill, just slow it enough that the sediment settles out.

All over your turbine, or the floor of your pond, or...

Windmills undoubtedly slow the wind. You'd need a heck of a lot of them to affect the climate enough to notice - say 10% of the country. Watch that space!

Andy

[The Natural Philosopher]

It appears that deserts are getting greener as a result of excess CO2.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Tidal power relies on slowing the movement down. If you don't do that you haven't extracted any energy from it.

[The Natural Philosopher]

But there is no grass under them

[Nightjar]

I'm fairly sure there is, although I will now have to check next time I drive past.

Colin Bignell

[harryagain]

Ah another idiot such as yourself. I hear someone has calculated that the moon is made of green cheese but we don'tmention that in sensible society because it is also obviously so stupid.