ACCORDING to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the global consumption of commercial energy has risen more than fourfold, far beating the growth of the world’s population. In other words, our population continues to increase and our demand for power is growing faster than we can produce it. No matter the type of resource we use to create energy, it all comes from natural resources. Even nuclear power derives from the natural element uranium.
As we move closer to a point where our dependency on fossil fuel will be halted, we are looking more toward renewable resources to move us into the future. But to understand where we are going, we need to understand how our technology has evolved. Since our region is best suited for solar and wind power, I will concentrate on these two forms of renewable energy.
The wind has been harvested for power as far back as 500 A.D. The wind energy was used to grind grains. Eventually, windmills were used to mill timber or pump water. Over the last 50 years, we started to use wind to generate electricity. Since then, wind energy has made a substantial contribution to renewable energy throughout the world. Within the last 30 years, wind turbines have grown four times in size. The blades have evolved into sleek long propeller-looking blades, some of which have a diameter that are longer than a football field.
Wind turbines in the 1980s could produce about 50 kilowatts of power. Today’s wind turbines can produce about 3 megawatts. A 1-megawatt wind turbine can provide power to run 350 average U.S. households for a year. In 2012, wind energy contributed to 43 percent off all new electricity added to the national power grid. The American Wind Energy Association stated that the wind turbines across the U.S. currently produce enough clean energy to meet the electrical needs of nearly 13 million homes. Utility-scale wind farms can now be found in 39 states.
Solar energy has had an amazing evolution over the last 50 years. The world is waking up to the fact that solar energy is truly God’s gift. Once installed, solar power systems require little to no maintenance. After the initial capital to purchase and install the system is repaid, it is absolutely free. Unlike wind power, the solar power that we know today came to fruition about 50 years ago. Scientists at Bell Laboratories used a semiconductor made of silicone to convert light into electricity. Since then, great strides have been made to make solar energy available to the masses at a reasonable price.
Over the last 20 years, the cost of solar energy systems has come down sevenfold. This decrease in price is due to the advancement in technology, increase in demand and manufacturing, and economical installation methods. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, solar energy was responsible for 50 percent of all newly added electricity capacity on the U.S. grid in 2012. Today, the solar power in the U.S. exceeds 8,500 megawatts. That is enough energy to power more than 1.3 million homes.
Thomas Edison envisioned a day when the world would be fueled by the sun. I do believe he was on to something.
As we move closer to a point where our dependency on fossil fuel will be halted, we are looking more toward renewable resources to move us into the future. But to understand where we are going, we need to understand how our technology has evolved. Since our region is best suited for solar and wind power, I will concentrate on these two forms of renewable energy.
The wind has been harvested for power as far back as 500 A.D. The wind energy was used to grind grains. Eventually, windmills were used to mill timber or pump water. Over the last 50 years, we started to use wind to generate electricity. Since then, wind energy has made a substantial contribution to renewable energy throughout the world. Within the last 30 years, wind turbines have grown four times in size. The blades have evolved into sleek long propeller-looking blades, some of which have a diameter that are longer than a football field.
Wind turbines in the 1980s could produce about 50 kilowatts of power. Today’s wind turbines can produce about 3 megawatts. A 1-megawatt wind turbine can provide power to run 350 average U.S. households for a year. In 2012, wind energy contributed to 43 percent off all new electricity added to the national power grid. The American Wind Energy Association stated that the wind turbines across the U.S. currently produce enough clean energy to meet the electrical needs of nearly 13 million homes. Utility-scale wind farms can now be found in 39 states.
Solar energy has had an amazing evolution over the last 50 years. The world is waking up to the fact that solar energy is truly God’s gift. Once installed, solar power systems require little to no maintenance. After the initial capital to purchase and install the system is repaid, it is absolutely free. Unlike wind power, the solar power that we know today came to fruition about 50 years ago. Scientists at Bell Laboratories used a semiconductor made of silicone to convert light into electricity. Since then, great strides have been made to make solar energy available to the masses at a reasonable price.
Over the last 20 years, the cost of solar energy systems has come down sevenfold. This decrease in price is due to the advancement in technology, increase in demand and manufacturing, and economical installation methods. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, solar energy was responsible for 50 percent of all newly added electricity capacity on the U.S. grid in 2012. Today, the solar power in the U.S. exceeds 8,500 megawatts. That is enough energy to power more than 1.3 million homes.
Thomas Edison envisioned a day when the world would be fueled by the sun. I do believe he was on to something.
Tracy Voacolo is the president of Micronesia Renewable Energy. She has more than 20 years of experience in the renewable energy industry. Tracy can be contacted at info[at]micronesiarenewableenergy.com.
For more information about Micronesia Renewable Energy, visit http://micronesiarenewableenergy.com/.