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I thought this was going to be about using solar energy to ‘terraform’ the area around solar farms in deserts. (Terraform isn’t the right word on earth but you

I thought this was going to be about using solar energy to ‘terraform’ the area around solar farms in deserts. (Terraform isn’t the right word on earth but you get the idea) Is anyone exploring that?

actionfromafar 4y ago
I thought it was sort of that.
sfink 4y ago
Sort of the opposite, in fact! It is blocking solar energy to 'terraform' the area around solar farms. (Well, first it terraforms the area under the solar farm, then we use that to terraform the surrounding area.) We are creating a shaded microclimate underneath a field of solar panels, which apparently can be harvested to meaningfully impact a larger area with a different climate. I wish they'd given figures on the expansion factor: one hectare of solar farm is enough to seed X hectares of desert. It reminds me of how the Amazon rainforest is fed in great part by a single small area in the Sahara (the Bodélé Depression in Chad). The area is 150km × 500km, but it seems like the relevant area (the winds have to exceed 36km/h to pick up enough dust to matter) may be smaller?
- sbierwagen 4y ago
  Since solar farms on average make the land they're on darker, therefore making them hotter, I've wondered if megascale PV installations would eventually include a few acres of PDRC panels (engineered materials that reflect visible light but radiate infrared light https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_daytime_radiative_cooling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_daytime_radiative_cool... ) to balance out their albedo contribution on net. They would look pretty funny from altitude. With alternating black solar panels and white radiator panels would they average out to gray? Tweak the pigment mix slightly so they end up a tan-ish resembling the dirt they cover?
wolfram74 4y ago
I think maybe an appropriate term would be anthroform? I feel an argument can be made that whatever form the earth is in, it's terraformed almost by tautology, but the kind of planetary gardening projects we must engage in to keep it in a good shape for /humans/ is to give the earth a particular form for us.
- sbierwagen 4y ago
  Greenform? Bonumform?
- akiselev 4y ago
  Autoformed, as in self-formed, by cyanobacteria
akerr 4y ago
I’d much prefer to see renewable energy used to desalinate water to irrigate deserts than wasted effort creating bases on the moon or Mars.
- beebeepka 4y ago
  What's wrong with doing both, as we should?

actionfromafar 4y ago

I thought it was sort of that.

sfink 4y ago

Sort of the opposite, in fact! It is blocking solar energy to 'terraform' the area around solar farms. (Well, first it terraforms the area under the solar farm, then we use that to terraform the surrounding area.) We are creating a shaded microclimate underneath a field of solar panels, which apparently can be harvested to meaningfully impact a larger area with a different climate. I wish they'd given figures on the expansion factor: one hectare of solar farm is enough to seed X hectares of desert. It reminds me of how the Amazon rainforest is fed in great part by a single small area in the Sahara (the Bodélé Depression in Chad). The area is 150km × 500km, but it seems like the relevant area (the winds have to exceed 36km/h to pick up enough dust to matter) may be smaller?

sbierwagen 4y ago
Since solar farms on average make the land they're on darker, therefore making them hotter, I've wondered if megascale PV installations would eventually include a few acres of PDRC panels (engineered materials that reflect visible light but radiate infrared light https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_daytime_radiative_cooling https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_daytime_radiative_cool... ) to balance out their albedo contribution on net. They would look pretty funny from altitude. With alternating black solar panels and white radiator panels would they average out to gray? Tweak the pigment mix slightly so they end up a tan-ish resembling the dirt they cover?

wolfram74 4y ago

I think maybe an appropriate term would be anthroform? I feel an argument can be made that whatever form the earth is in, it's terraformed almost by tautology, but the kind of planetary gardening projects we must engage in to keep it in a good shape for /humans/ is to give the earth a particular form for us.

sbierwagen 4y ago
Greenform? Bonumform?
akiselev 4y ago
Autoformed, as in self-formed, by cyanobacteria

akerr 4y ago

I’d much prefer to see renewable energy used to desalinate water to irrigate deserts than wasted effort creating bases on the moon or Mars.

beebeepka 4y ago
What's wrong with doing both, as we should?