Radically Increasing Use of Solar Insolation

The enormous power that the Sun continuously delivers to Earth dwarfs every other energy source, renewable or nonrenewable. The warming effects of the sun and cooling consequence of night are enough energy to compel the great oceanic and atmospheric currents. This effect brings fresh water inland through the cycle of evaporation and condensation and that drives river flows. Even the devastating natural effects of typhoons, hurricanes, and tornadoes are provoked by the suns energy.

The sun provides Earth with a staggering amount of energy. Earth's resource of oil energy, estimated at 3 trillion barrels, is supplied by the Sun to Earth every 2 days. The amount of oil that is ultimately recoverable may be less and we have already consumed over half and production is faltering at today’s 85 million barrels per day. Humans have 50 trillion dollars worth of equipment that is dependent on cheep fossil fuels:  oil, natural gas or coal. Fossil fuels are nonrenewable resource and with increasing demand over the next 30 years, gas will sell for $30 per gallon without some intervention. To slow this inflation, the best course is to raise the price now and use the proceeds to invest in concentrating solar, wind, wave, geothermal, nuclear, and small hydro power plants. The rising cost of fossil fuels and their impact on the environment and climate are the primary reasons to utilize more solar energy. The conversion efficiency of photosynthesis is less than 1 percent-that is sun energy to plant mass is about 1%. Photovoltaic -direct sun light to electricity- conversion efficiencies for solar cells are currently at best 15 percent. The best concentrating solar thermal efficiency today is about 35 percent. Pushing the limits of heat transmission, a new generation of generators and using heat recovery, are several breakthrough technologies that will improve solar power plants toward efficiencies up to 60 percent.

The total amount of energy human’s use annually is delivered to Earth by the Sun in one hour. The Sun has the enormous untapped potential to supply our growing energy needs. Estimates are that 60 gigawatts of concentrating solar steam turbine electric generating power plants are needed in the USA and Mexico before 2035. At current commodity prices this would be about $400 Billion Dollars. If worldwide, we spend $20 trillion dollars on renewable energy, conservation and new efficiencies before 2020, oil could last for 100 years and gas will peak about $10 per gallon in 30 years. The bad news is we are using resources that do not yield productive results:  Japan investing in Natural Gas Fuel Cells; The Americas investing in ethanol; Indonesia investing in palm oil; Canada investing in tar sands. The good news is we have started renewable investments:  Asia and N. America investing in nuclear; Europe, The Americas, Africa and Asia investing in solar; and wind generation is expanding world wide.