3 ms·
> Fenceposts are cheap. It's a problem of available space (or rather, area). When you run out of space on Earth (you filled all the deserts, or all the space
by henearkr 4y ago
> Fenceposts are cheap.
It's a problem of available space (or rather, area).
When you run out of space on Earth (you filled all the deserts, or all the space that would not deprive natural species of their habitat and photosynthesis), and I predict that it will happen (as there potentially no limit to our energy consumption), you need to go to outer space (first in Earth orbit, then later (to avoid to completely shade off the planet) in Solar orbit).
As for energy transmission, I can think of some ways to make it happen, for example use a high-altitude balloon as a receiver, tethered with a cable to transmit down the current. That could answer your worries of transmission efficiency through the atmosphere (in space's void though, no problem). Worth investigating.
- ncmncm 4y agoWe won't run out of room on the ground. Population will level off, and concentrate in cities. There will be no value in transmitting microwaves from space, because we get plenty of light already. Eventually, aneutronic fusion will provide more convenient concentrated power. In the meantime, solar coexists nicely with farm crops and reservoirs, and we have many, many, many times as much of that as we would need to put solar onto, so it will only be on the best places for it, sharing with crops that get better yield by it. When the population in space is large, they will almost all be descended from other people already there. Very few will have moved out there.