[Server-sky] [ExI] Power sats again

[Michael Turner]

Charles writes: "My interest is delivering global solutions, hydro is
more of a smaller niche solution, not global"

But it's precisely to globalize hydro power that I propose it be
beamed up to SSP microwave relays.

How can you keep missing this point, over and over?

And you could do this with any renewable. Since most renewables (tidal
power excepted) are ultimately solar-driven, I ask: isn't this also
SSP, even if there's no PV array at the orbital microwave link?

Regards,
Michael Turner

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On Thu, Jul 18, 2013 at 10:33 AM, Charles Radley <cfrjlr at gmail.com> wrote:
> On 7/17/2013 4:14 PM, Michael Turner wrote:
>>
>> "The problem with hydro in most places is that it is remote, or small,
>> or destructive of habitat, and usually all three."
>>
>> First, something that keeps getting lost in this discussion is that I
>> propose beaming power up from Earth through a microwave relay back
>> down to Earth. Surely, if it's very efficient sky-to-Earth, it's no
>> less efficient Earth-to-sky? I really don't want people to lose track
>> of the basic idea, but (thanks, Charles) maybe that's gotten drowned
>> out by a misunderstanding of what I saying in the first place.
>
>
>
> Sure, it is in the link budget numbers.
>
>
>>
>> Second, "small" and "destructive of habitat" might not be mutually
>> exclusive, but in general, smaller is far less destructive. I believe
>> the Sierra Club's official position on hydro is: small is good, big is
>> bad.
>
>
> Right.
>
>
>> Finally, I'm trying to address "remote." Forget big dams, for the
>> moment. If you have lots of (small) hydro in a remote area, and
>> collect it over wires to a microwave transmission and beam it to
>> space, for distribution to markets, that takes us back to my question
>> of definition: since hydro power is solar, in effect, could relaying
>> that power through orbit be considered a kind of SSP?
>
>
> Certainly.  My interest is delivering global solutions, hydro is more of a
> smaller niche solution, not global.  There is certainly plenty of capacity
> to expand hydro in Africa, but most of the consumers are in Asia, North
> American and Europe.
>
>
>> And if the capital costs of starting with SSP as microwave /relays/
>> are much lower, instead of with huge PV arrays in orbit, well,
>> wouldn't that be the place to start with SSP?
>
>
> Possibly.
>
> Best,
>
> CFR.
>
>
>
> --
>
> Charles F Radley
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>