As the planet gets hotter, engineers are racing to find ways to store renewable energy on a massive scale—before it’s too late.
Burning fossil fuels churned out by Big Oil can power the world 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, sending electricity almost anywhere near-instantaneously. Unfortunately, this very effective (and profitable) source of power is pushing ecosystems, animal species and human civilization closer to catastrophe every day.
Renewable sources such as wind and solar tend not to have these unfortunate side effects. But they aren’t nearly as dependable: breezy sunny days are generally not under our control. With nuclear power in retreat in most countries, these two sources of energy are the center of any hope humanity has to slow global warming. For that to happen, there has to be a way to save some of that power for, well, a rainy day.
Toward that end, engineers have been racing to find ways to store green energy on a massive scale. Some of the solutions they’ve come up with are indeed huge—and weird. On this episode of “Power Moves,” we explore the ways in which scientists are trying to bank electricity—and save us.
Source: Bloomberg
