4 ms·

I wonder why none of the projects is trying balloons... Or are they?

• dredmorbius 7y ago
  Mass vs. lift. For the stated generation model, the kite's lift is being directly used to create electricity as it is reeled out and in. For lofted generators (Google's power kites), you're putting the turbines and generators in the air. Both are more effective with kites than balloons, as in the first you get more lift providing generation directly, and in the second a far smaller wing can support a much larger weight than is possible with a balloon. Frankly I don't think any of these approaches is very practical in the long term at scale. Too many fiddly bits.