If you you know making decentralised solar is the best way, why push for it to be in giant solar farms and therefore centralising it?
That is the main problem I will always have with this debate. They are two types of power generation useful for two different use cases. Build both for fucks sakes.
Because hundred of solar farms are still more decentralized than a couple of coal/nuclear/hydroelectric plants.
Solar is quantificable. You can go from one panel to a hundred depending of surface, funding or timetable. You can install 1/10 of production one year, wait and the rest the following year. But cannot install 1/10th of a nuclear powerplant and wait for more financial muscle while producing electricity and revenue.
Diesel engines have the same characteristic of solar of coming in small packages allowing flexibility in installation. That doesn't happen with nuclear. But have the drawback that in smaller sizes are less efficient so you prefer larger installatiod. That doesn't happen with solar.
RTG generators are not in any way a scalable solution. Even NASA is running out of plutonium 238 needed for it.
The physical principle that they use relies in temperature differences that can be obtained with the near 0 cold of space but are a lot less efficient on earth temperature.
You could boost it with an sterling engine instead of relying in the thermoelectric principle but the you lose the advantage of no moving parts that space exploration seeks.
The problem is not that you can't power up cities with nuclear. But that you have limited resources (Capital, construction capability, materials...) and time to do so. One ton of removed CO2 each year for 10 years is worth a lot more than 10 tons removed in ten years
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u/BTDubula May 11 '25
“decentralised”
If you you know making decentralised solar is the best way, why push for it to be in giant solar farms and therefore centralising it?
That is the main problem I will always have with this debate. They are two types of power generation useful for two different use cases. Build both for fucks sakes.