Prices of the electricity we use to charge

[Tony1951]

"Meanwhile a feed of moisture laden air was accelerating in from the northern tropical Indian Ocean and converging over the desert. Dew point temperatures over the UAE were similar to those normally found in the rainforests of the Congo basin.
Under these conditions, thunderstorms develop very readily and in this case a special kind of storm, a mesoscale convective system, built and sustained itself for many hours. Infrared satellite data showed it to be about the size of France."

 

[Tony1951]

Two lifeforms merge in once-in-a-billion-years evolutionary event

Last time this happened, Earth got plants.

newatlas.com

That is a VERY interesting article Lenny.

Changes like that were key to the way our ancestors turned from slime in the water into what we are today and as the article says, were thought to have only happened twice before. One of the changes allowed single cells to grow into multi cell plants and eventually, animals - like us and worms and stuff, the other invented plants which break down co2 and release oxygen into the atmosphere.

For billions of years, Earth had an atmosphere of nitrogen, methane and co2 with no oxygen and no animals at all. Without that change in those water based slime cells, no animals, or fish would exist, because the oxygen which now makes up one fifth of our atmosphere would not exist as free oxygen atoms in the air. Earth has always had plenty of oxygen, but it was tied up in rocks, rust and co2. That element just loves to combine itself with other stuff, which was why I had to junk my old car just recently (ferrous oxide chassis). Without plants we would soon be panting for oxygen, because the stuff would have come out of the air and locked itself up with other elements.

I am especially interested in the topic, because I am interested in the likelihood of life as we know it happening on distant planets around other stars than the sun. Such an occurrence would depend on step changes such as this one - cells incorporating other cells inside them and becoming something else entirely. Without that, the only life would be single celled slime life. Although these kinds of changes are very rare, they are only half as rare as we thought before this was found.

 

[lenny]

Four reasons why the world needs to limit nitrogen pollution

Nitrogen is crucial to life on Earth, but it can also be a disruptive pollutant.

www.unep.org

 

[saneagle]

@saneagle

"The interesting thing is that humans have a hard time coming to terms with the fact that 2,400 gigatonnes of carbon (our total emissions since pre-industrial times) might make a difference to climate, but very readily get behind the idea of a few hygroscopic flares making 18 months worth of rain fall in a day."

They also have difficulty understanding why all the world leaders, who are telling us to panic, fly around in their private jets to have meetings about it, then send getting on for a trillion dollars to Ukraine, Israel and other places to burn fireworks that not only put CO2 directly into the atmosphere and contribute to global warming, but burn everything else in sight. Have you seen what a forest looks like in Ukraine?

They also have trouble understanding why, if climate change is the world's biggest priority, they'd rather spend 2 billion dollars a day on burning stuff, when they could have used that money to give away 200,000 heat pumps per day.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_the_Russian_invasion_of_Ukraine

 

[Woosh]

They also have difficulty understanding why all the world leaders, who are telling us to panic, fly around in their private jets to have meetings about it, then send getting on for a trillion dollars to Ukraine, Israel and other places to burn fireworks that not only put CO2 directly into the atmosphere and contribute to global warming, but burn everything else in sight. Have you seen what a forest looks like in Ukraine?

They also have trouble understanding why, if climate change is the world's biggest priority, they'd rather spend 2 billion dollars a day on burning stuff, when they could have used that money to give away 200,000 heat pumps per day.

I suspect that petrol producing countries and petrol companies do like betting and tobacco companies, spend a lot of money on marketing. Selling on convenience and exaggerating the dangers of alternatives.

 

[Woosh]

wind and solar electricity is now much cheaper than electricity produced by fossil fuels. The new booming industry is grid storage, expected to grow about 32% a year for a while.
China's CATL makes an abosute mint on it.
Emergency generators are paid up to 7 times normal rates.
Grid storage batteries' capital costs about $80-$100 / kwh.
CATL makes containerised batteries at up to 6MWH per container.

 

[Tony1951]

wind and solar electricity is now much cheaper than electricity produced by fossil fuels. The new booming industry is grid storage, expected to grow about 32% a year for a while.
China's CATL makes an abosute mint on it.
Emergency generators are paid up to 7 times normal rates.
Grid storage batteries' capital costs about $80-$100 / kwh.
CATL makes containerised batteries at up to 6MWH per container.

I'm wondering why BAE systems who build nuclear reactors for ships and submarines in ideal indoor, factory conditions are not being hired to build 500 Mwatt reactors for the grid.

The cost of these would be vastly cheaper than the ridiculous expense put into Sizewell and other nuclear sites and would be vastly quicker to come onstream. I have lost track of the costs sunk into the civil nuclear programme and they are producing about the most expensive electricity or will do if they are ever finished.

We do have just about the most useless politicians we could find, and this is not a party political point. If anyone thinks we are going to get a better class of politician next time round when the parties change, which they will do, think again.

 

[Tony1951]

@saneagle

Should we let leaders with Napoleon complexes invade their neighbours and force the population against their will to accept servitude by violence?

I don't think so. Not by a long mile. It has been made absolutely clear by the way they have fought off Putin's Orcs that the Ukrainians don't want anything to do with Putin and his Russian Empire / Greater Russia complex. Every dead Russian in that conflict is a good Russian. The more the better and there is nothing i would not give up, and no tax rate I would not be glad to suffer to repel that invasion. If he wins in Ukraine, he will take back the Baltic States, Poland and any other place he fancies soon afterwards.

Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods

An extraordinary portrait of lives compromised by war.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Woosh]

I'm wondering why BAE systems who build nuclear reactors for ships and submarines in ideal indoor, factory conditions are not being hired to build 500 Mwatt reactors for the grid.

The cost of these would be vastly cheaper than the ridiculous expense put into Sizewell and other nuclear sites and would be vastly quicker to come onstream. I have lost track of the costs sunk into the civil nuclear programme and they are producing about the most expensive electricity or will do if they are ever finished.

We do have just about the most useless politicians we could find, and this is not a party political point. If anyone thinks we are going to get a better class of politician next time round when the parties change, which they will do, think again.

I think nuclear cannot compete on cost for the foreseeable future against solar. Industry turns to grid storage and high voltage interconnectors. Politicians would throw a bone or two to SMRs but are not serious about them.

 

[Tony1951]

I think nuclear cannot compete on cost for the foreseeable future against solar. Industry turns to grid storage and high voltage interconnectors. Politicians would throw a bone or two to SMRs but are not serious about them.

I am sure that is right, but we need backup for the times the wind don't blow and the sun don't shine. I am a big fan of wind, but it is not always there and neither is the sun.

I had high hopes for that Dessert Tec initiative to build massive solar power stations in North Africa, but it has not come to much. There is the Noor plant in Algeria, or is it Morocco.... Great idea genuine Nuclear Fusion reactor (the sun) and 98% availability at high efficiency during daylight hours. We are wasting a massive resource. The on site storage of heat in molten salt vats allows the station to operate 24/7 98% of the time.



North Africa is a perfectly plausible location from the power transport point of view with ultra high voltage DC transmission. Losses at under 10% which compares favourably with the grid here I think.

You might be interested in this website which shows how our power is being generated the instantaneous price and other things:

National Grid: Live

Shows the live status of Great Britain’s electric power transmission network

grid.iamkate.com

Scroll down the page. There is a ton of info there.

 

[saneagle]

@saneagle

Should we let leaders with Napoleon complexes invade their neighbours and force the population against their will to accept servitude by violence?

I don't think so. Not by a long mile. It has been made absolutely clear by the way they have fought off Putin's Orcs that the Ukrainians don't want anything to do with Putin and his Russian Empire / Greater Russia complex. Every dead Russian in that conflict is a good Russian. The more the better and there is nothing i would not give up, and no tax rate I would not be glad to suffer to repel that invasion. If he wins in Ukraine, he will take back the Baltic States, Poland and any other place he fancies soon afterwards.

Ukraine: Enemy in the Woods

An extraordinary portrait of lives compromised by war.

www.bbc.co.uk

What about leaders, who defend their countrymen against nazis that missile them, murder them and cut off their water supply? Should they just let it happen because of the risk to climate change or should they fight back to protect their countrymen?

Maybe you're not aware, but Putin agreed to a peace deal in 2022, but then Boris turned up and scuppered it. All the fake mainstream media attempted to de unknown that story, but it turns out to be true, just like Putin said.

https://www.intellinews.com/fresh-evidence-suggests-that-the-april-2022-istanbul-peace-deal-to-end-the-war-in-ukraine-was-stillborn-321468/

 

[lenny]

"Ukrainians using e-bikes mounted with missiles to blow up Russian tanks"

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/ukrainians-e-bikes-mounted-missiles-blow-up-russian-tanks-175221749.html

 

[Tony1951]

I think nuclear cannot compete on cost for the foreseeable future against solar. Industry turns to grid storage and high voltage interconnectors. Politicians would throw a bone or two to SMRs but are not serious about them.

Here is the problem with wind and solar (which we are both in favour of. This is the generation mix right now at 22.30 on Sunday night.



Solar is gone and so is the wind - pretty much. Other days are different. Last week we had this:



But it would be pretty hard to make up the difference tonight with storage let alone in those long winter highs when there is no wind to speak of for a week. We MUST have a good available source of base load and it ain't going to be batteries I think

 

[soundwave]

Dear Stroud District Council,
please could you tell me how many homes these were installed in as if like mine they have never been serviced ie the inverter cleaned out and the panels cleaned every 6 months as per the instructions in the inverters manual.
these inverters made buy delta electronics only had a service life of 5 years and warranty, delta got out of the solar business in 2010 so had no warranty left at all when they was installed in 2015.
lcx the company you hire to so call service these inverters do no such thing they are not qualified to open them or service any part of them and can only remove old system and replace with new ones.
a guy from lcx came to our home 2 times to look what was wrong with the inverter and just reset it both times when the lcd front panel display was full off errors because the capacitors were done for and why they need to replaced every 5 years and this is the same for my new inverter i had fitted and is now saving us money on the electric bill.
so why are these inverters that are out of service life still in ppls attics and not been replaced as they could risk burning the hole house down and most ppl has never even had them looked at since they was installed in 2015 nor have they been cleaned or the panels security checked on the roof in 9 years?
does the council have any duty of care to these ppl with out of service life inverters that no longer work and could be a fire risk as none of them bar mine and 1 other person has had them looked at since they was installed.
Solar panels
If you live in a property with solar panels and there are any issues with it, please contact our contractor, LCX, on 01175 591414.
https://www.stroud.gov.uk/housing/counci...
that phone number is wrong and have told you this yet it never changes, why?
https://lowcarbonexchange.com/contact-us/
i have also told our housing officer about this and sent plenty of emails to him to forward on to the department that deals with it and again nothing happens, why?
and lcx does not clean the solar panels either and as you own the panels is it not in your best interest to keep them clean and make them more efficient and make you more money.
also could you provide me how much these panels have generated money wise to the council each year to date in all areas and how many inverters have been replaced.
Yours faithfully,

lets see what they say about that

 

[soundwave]

done electric bill today 76 quid cheapest its ever been was 103 last month

 

[PC2017]

contribute to global warming

I heard somewhere that the Military Global warming contribution is not included in targets. Not even mentioning the fact that every exploded shell is valuable resources wasted. It wouldn't surprise me that some kid somewhere is collecting spent missiles with the intention of recycling.

 

[Tony1951]

I heard somewhere that the Military Global warming contribution is not included in targets. Not even mentioning the fact that every exploded shell is valuable resources wasted. It wouldn't surprise me that some kid somewhere is collecting spent missiles with the intention of recycling.

I don't know whether military emissions are calculated in co2 emissions targets. In anycase, the military emissions are as nothing to the massive emissions of China and the general emissions of a nation like ours.

The UK emits only 1% of global co2.
China emits about 36 times what we do, partly because they are now by far the biggest manufacturer of world goods, but also because they are wedded to coal fired power generation and are still building new coal fired generators (last year they built more coal power stations than our total generating capacity).

China is also building coal power generation all over Africa.

The question of whether we defend ourselves against the new Russian Empire being expanded is nothing to do with co2 emissions. Russian barbarism and destruction is not to be given in to. It must be opposed at all costs and the costs will be far more painful than anything to do with global warming.

Putin and his FSB criminal pals have already stolen vast amounts from their own countrymen and murdered anybody who opposes them and they will do the same across Ukraine, Poland and the Baltics if they are allowed to do it. I would stop at NOTHING to prevent them having success.

 

[saneagle]

I don't know whether military emissions are calculated in co2 emissions targets. In anycase, the military emissions are as nothing to the massive emissions of China and the general emissions of a nation like ours.

The UK emits only 1% of global co2.
China emits about 36 times what we do, partly because they are now by far the biggest manufacturer of world goods, but also because they are wedded to coal fired power generation and are still building new coal fired generators (last year they built more coal power stations than our total generating capacity).

China is also building coal power generation all over Africa.

The question of whether we defend ourselves against the new Russian Empire being expanded is nothing to do with co2 emissions. Russian barbarism and destruction is not to be given in to. It must be opposed at all costs and the costs will be far more painful than anything to do with global warming.

Putin and his FSB criminal pals have already stolen vast amounts from their own countrymen and murdered anybody who opposes them and they will do the same across Ukraine, Poland and the Baltics if they are allowed to do it. I would stop at NOTHING to prevent them having success.

You've been reading too many war comics.

 

[Woosh]

China emits about 36 times what we do, partly because they are now by far the biggest manufacturer of world goods, but also because they are wedded to coal fired power generation and are still building new coal fired generators (last year they built more coal power stations than our total generating capacity).

it's only partially true.
EVs account for more than 40% of cars in China and in the last quarter, sales of EVs in China overtook ICE cars.
China has enough solar electricity to cover the needs of 1.41 billion Chinese. It's only their industries that need burning fossil fuels and are responsible such huge emissions. When people talk about thorium or Gen IV nuclear reactors or SMRs, only China is capable of making them at present time. China has overtaken the US in science and technology since last year thanks to US embargo. China GDP is still growing more than the rest of G7.
China's biggest problem is in the real estate sector.

 

[Tony1951]

it's only partially true.
EVs account for more than 40% of cars in China and in the last quarter, sales of EVs in China overtook ICE cars.
China has enough solar electricity to cover the needs of 1.41 billion Chinese. It's only their industries that need burning fossil fuels and are responsible such huge emissions. When people talk about thorium or Gen IV nuclear reactors or SMRs, only China is capable of making them at present time. China has overtaken the US in science and technology since last year thanks to US embargo. China GDP is still growing more than the rest of G7.
China's biggest problem is in the real estate sector.

62% of China's power generation is fuelled by coal burning. The issue is not just the percentage of coal burning, but the vast amount of it. China is by far the greatest emitter of co2 and by far the largest consumer of coal on the planet.

They are currently consuming 4.3 billion tonnes of coal a year. That alone emits 13 Billion tonnes of co2, and of course it is not the only fossil fuel they use.

China Coal Reserves and Consumption Statistics - Worldometer

Current and historical Reserves, Production, and Consumption of Natural Coal in China. Global rank and share of world's total. Data, Statistics and Charts.

www.worldometers.info

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/chinas-coal-country-full-steam-ahead-with-new-power-plants-despite-climate-2023-11-30/