News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:Fusion Foolery by delecti on Thursday August 17, 2023 @09:52AM (#37161595)
The comment didn't say "90% solar", it said "90% renewables". That includes hydro and wind, which don't stop at night or in the winter.
Re:Fusion Foolery by concordDance on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:25AM (#37162130)
https://gridwatch.templar.co.uk/

Wind can be very low for days and low for weeks.

Hydro is ecologically devastating and there aren't enough sites for it.

Re:Fusion Foolery by awestroke on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:40AM (#37162394)
Unlike oil and coal which are very ecologically beneficial?
Re:Fusion Foolery by ComputerGuru on Thursday August 17, 2023 @12:39PM (#37164377)
That's not a fair reply at all. If we don't care about the ecology, then we might as well just continue to use petroleum!
Re:Fusion Foolery by awestroke on Thursday August 17, 2023 @12:55PM (#37164649)
Ecosystem damage from hydro is local, ecosystem from fossil fuel is global. We are heading for extinction as a species, and under such circumstances it makes sense to cause local ecosystem damage in the form of flooding.
Re:Fusion Foolery by ComputerGuru on Thursday August 17, 2023 @01:01PM (#37164759)
> We are heading for extinction as a species, and under such circumstances [...]

We absolutely are not headed towards extinction as a species. We are like cockroaches and the human species will survive. Using "oh no, the human race is dying out altogether and we must preserve it all costs" is a ridiculous argument.

> [..] it makes sense to cause local ecosystem damage in the form of flooding.

It isn't just the (risk of) flooding. It's hubris to believe we can actually foresee all the second-order ramifications from such large-scale terraforming projects. (Hydroelectric) dams have devastated the local wildlife, transformed the surrounding permaculture for the worse, and set off horrible chain reactions with devastating consequences for the local flora and fauna which have global ramifications down the line, as we are discovering today. Nothing happens in a bubble.

This same argument was once made of fossil fuel emissions (when we thought that smog in the biggest industrial cities was our biggest problem and outsourcing them to developing nations was a great win-win /s). That obviously wasn't true. Why would you wish to repeat the same mistake?

Re:Fusion Foolery by concordDance on Sunday August 20, 2023 @12:58PM (#37200912)
We certainly aren't even close to going extinct.

I recommend reading actual IPCC projections and analysis rather than whatever media hype you've been fed.

Re:Fusion Foolery by concordDance on Sunday August 20, 2023 @12:59PM (#37200924)
Arguments aren't soldiers. It's both possible for hydro to be damaging and for it to be less damaging than coal.
Re:Fusion Foolery by WorldMaker on Thursday August 17, 2023 @03:11PM (#37166530)
There are really interesting innovations in hydro power ecology in the last many decades. Things like salmon runs, salmon ladders, and salmon cannons. (They benefit other freshwater fish, too, we just tend to like salmon the best in our naming scheme bias.) "Devastating" is a bit strong given all the work going into sustainable hydro power and environmentally aware hydro projects.
Re:Fusion Foolery by tmikaeld on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:01AM (#37161701)
Current and near-future grid cannot handle such a balance of renewables, especially hydro takes a lot of beating when the water level goes up and down constantly.
Re:Fusion Foolery by delecti on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:44AM (#37162480)
Nobody is blind to the fact that the grid will need to be updated to be more flexible.
Re:Fusion Foolery by ekianjo on Thursday August 17, 2023 @10:08AM (#37161822)
Thats a myth. You cannot have baseline power with renewables only throughout the year. Hydro only works in very specific places and the same for wind.
Re:Fusion Foolery by dale_glass on Thursday August 17, 2023 @12:02PM (#37163758)
Why? Build more. Interconnect with HVDC.
Re:Fusion Foolery by pfdietz on Thursday August 17, 2023 @04:12PM (#37167286)
Yes, you may need various kinds of storage as well, filled by renewables. E-fuels can be used to shift energy across seasons.