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*** g74 8/22 pp. 20-23 Energy Supplies in Abundance *** Energy Supplies in Abundance ENERGY is very much in demand. All life in the universe depends upon it. Without energy there would be no food to eat, water to drink or air to breathe. In recent years people have become concerned about the supply of energy available to man. Electric power cuts, blackouts, rising prices for heating fuels and long lines at gas stations have made “energy crisis” household words. This could lead some to believe that the earth’s supply of energy is running dangerously low. Is that really the case? Not at all. In fact, the earth has abundant, virtually unlimited, energy supplies. How so? The Sun—Energy Unlimited The sun is the principal source of energy for the earth. Each year this immense, nuclear furnace bathes the earth with energy equivalent to that contained in 250 million million tons of coal, about 100,000 tons for each person on earth. In one day enough sun energy shines upon Lake Erie alone to meet the needs (if it could be fully utilized) of the entire American populace for a whole year. Where does the sun get its energy? Scientist Ralph E. Lapp explains: “The sun is an enormous nuclear machine. It runs by fusing ions of light hydrogen (H1) to form the heavier atoms of helium (He4). . . . The energy released becomes heat. Every minute about 40 billion tons of hydrogen atoms are fused on the sun.” The sun is indirectly responsible for many other forms of energy too. The sun’s rays cause tropical air to warm up and rise while cooler air from polar regions flows in to replace it. This creates winds that can be used for sailing ships, grinding grain, or even for producing electricity from windmill-powered generators. Coal is the fossilized remains of plants that stored solar energy in their cells long ago. Likewise, the chemical energy in oil is the light and radiant energy of the sun stored in the cells of living things in the past. Sun Power for a Modern World Efforts in modern times to make greater use of sun power have been interesting. There are at least twenty houses in the United States using solar energy to reduce heating costs. An experimental house in Newark, New Jersey, derives 80 percent of its electrical, heating and air-conditioning needs from the sun. Two United States solar energy researchers, Dr. and Mrs. Aiden Meinel, have suggested spreading out sunlight collectors over vast areas. They say that such “solar farms” covering a total area of 15,000 square miles in the southwestern United States could achieve an electrical generating capacity of one million megawatts, enough to care for the entire country’s electrical needs between now and the year 2000. Some have suggested putting a huge solar energy collector into earth orbit. Such a satellite would contain “solar cells” that convert sunlight directly into electricity. It would beam this back to a receiving antenna on earth as microwaves that would be reconverted into electricity. And a satellite would be unencumbered by inclement weather. God’s generous gift of the sun has made available to mankind virtually unlimited supplies of energy. Of course, devising means of ‘plugging into the sun’ for today’s massive energy demands presents some knotty technological, political and economic problems. But is today’s massive energy consumption really working for man’s happiness? Does the ready availability of material gadgets in crowded, smog-filled cities result in a sense of well-being greater than in the society of bygone days? Some persons have concluded that they would rather have a different way of life. They enjoy pollution-free power from their own windmill-powered generator. This source of power was common on farms in the past. But recently both individuals and the United States government have been giving windmills a second look. With little difficulty a family can at least pump water and provide light for their home in this manner. Energy from Water in Motion For thousands of years man has taken advantage of the power of flowing water as a source of energy. The first plant for generating electricity by water power appeared in Appleton, Wisconsin, in 1882. Hydroelectric plants now utilize the power of onrushing waters to produce close to a third of the world’s electricity. The oceans, which cover more than 70 percent of our globe, hold vast potential as an energy resource. The ebb and flow of the tides keep countless billions of gallons of water in motion each day. During 1961-1967 a major hydroelectric plant that uses tidal energy was built in northern France. A dam equipped with reversible turbines permits production of electricity by tides flowing in either direction. In 1969 a tidal power plant was completed in the Soviet Union. There are nearly one hundred sites in the world that could, on the basis of man’s present knowledge, be utilized to provide tidal electric power.
Energy Beneath the Earth’s Crust Another potent source of energy is within the earth itself. Less than forty miles beneath its surface there is a layer of molten rock and gas, called “magma.” This seething mass may reach temperatures as high as 3,300 degrees Fahrenheit. The gases from cooling magma heat underground water, causing geysers of hot water and steam to erupt, sometimes hundreds of feet into the air. For decades some homes and greenhouses have tapped these “geothermal” energy sources for hot water and heating. In 1904 Italians hooked up generators to a source of natural steam at Lardarello, Italy. This power plant produces enough electricity each year to operate most of Italy’s railway system. Dr. Robert Rex, a geologist who has done much work exploring the possibilities of geothermal power, feels that large-scale exploration of this type of energy could turn up a generating capacity of a billion kilowatts, nearly three times the present United States generating capacity. But economic and political obstacles crop up here too. The initial cost would be high, for geothermal steam is cooler than that used in most generating plants and, therefore, not so efficient. Extraction of energy from “dry” subterranean areas requires sinking wells into hot rock to allow water from the surface to penetrate so as to produce steam. Pollution from salts and sulfur in the hot water and steam is another problem. But if these difficulties could be worked out in a system of things in which love of neighbor took precedence over self-interest, how beneficial this rich source of energy that lies beneath the earth’s crust would be to mankind! |
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