Here Comes The Sun
If it were up to the sun, we would have no energy problem. Every half hour on the Earth’s surface, there is more than enough light to provide energy needs for the whole world in a year. We don’t have an energy problem, we have a conversion problem. If we are able to harvest sunlight in smart way, then we can prevent a global energy crisis.
That sounds nice but that does not mean it will succeed, at least that is what many different bodies want us to believe. It’s too expensive, takes too much space, too much material, it costs more energy than it brings, and it is still not efficient enough. While all these doubts play a role for solar energy in the distant future, it is still a marginal player in the global energy game. Back-light takes the edge off these myths and shows that a solar economy is much closer than we think. Next year, there are already rolling Giga Watts of solar cells on the conveyor belt. The industry has mastered the technology and the machines.
Radical German government measures have proved that it is possible. Villagers have completely installed solar power on empty lands. Power stations contribute to the network and where they are deserved. Many countries follow the German example: The Americans have their Grand Solar Plan and the French President Sarkozy is talking about a solar plan with the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. According to the Spanish electricity producers, oil companies will be left out. So what energy crisis? The sun is coming! (Excerpt from vpro.nl)
Watch the full documentary now
Now, after seen this documetary, i am close to think, that envaeronmentalism is not criminally ****** kaind of religion … Parallely to time – highly recommend spend antention on “Here Comes The Sun”. – Documentary as documentary, but facts there are great!
Can’t say enough about the information on this documentary. If more and more younger people get involved and find a track that fits then maybe we can unplug from the oil cartels.
I watched this in full a second time as I experienced some domestic interruptions the first time around. I have been a proponent of solar technology for some time and remember telling myself 20 years ago that at least one nation will take the opportunity to the max and of course it had to be Germany. I’m particularly interested in the geo thermal developments in Iceland as well. In the region west of where I live the Ginseng industry has occupied large tracts of semi-arid soils. If the Ginseng market crashes it would certainly be logical (and now more viable economically) to replace crops with energy supply. Thanks Vlatko for including this excellent ‘full meal deal’ so to speak re: solar awesomeness!
Take away the Greed that fuels the need for large profit from this equasion and it might just work.
Or we could just use the electricity that is in the air all around us for free…
But that will never happen as long as people can’t make money from it it will never be used.
Think Tesla i did……
From a personal perspective, it was only at the beginning of this year (2010) that I learned of the incredibly awe-inspiring potential of solar energy. This, for me, was the major hindrance to applying it. I thought that no matter how well we utilise it, we are simply consuming too much to have it meet our needs. How wrong can I be?! In a matter of hours, enough solar energy reaches the surface of the Earth to meet our current energy needs for a year. I was so dumbstruck by this that I had to do the calculations myself – and it is true.
In other words, instead of using an energy source which is more than sufficient for our energy needs and will last for billions of years, we are using an energy source which is not sufficient for our needs, does us damage and takes millions of years for the Earth to create. I mean, I knew that greed was corrosive to humanity but this takes it to a point where the mining giants ought to be forced to eat their resources or something!
To: normal. I wouldn’t be too pessimistic. I wouldn’t be too optimistic either. The difference between this scenario and Tesla though is that here, hundreds or thousands of individuals are aware of, and are working on, the technology. The roll-out has already started. It is more a question of when rather than if and yes, that does depend in part on the extent to which the vested interests can get their way (and yes, that will further impact on the planet) but, in the end, solar will win.
Great documentary though. If anyone wants to back a winner, you can’t go past solar.
Unfortunately this seems a little biased. Solar Panels aren’t very effecient, and they are expensive to make if i am not mistaken.
Jacob M: I wanted to reply.
You are right. Now, in August 2010, solar panels are not as efficient as they could be. Yes, they are also expensive for the average wage earner who is paying the rent or mortgage and groceries every week.
The question is: what will the situation be in August 2015? August 2020? August 2025? August 2030? The answer: it depends upon how much people like you, me and others watching this documentary let the benefits of solar power be known to people. Those benefits are: there is *no* pollution, it could be developed to meet our needs *thousands* of times over, it will last for *billions* of years, the sun is accessible to everyone…
Regards,
Tom.