[citation][nom]jellico[/nom]I hate to be a spoil-sport, but stuff like this is really just an exercise in "that's kinda cool" but offers no practical solutions for our energy problems.As I've said before solar and wind (even combined) are a bust. We currently get 49% of our electricity from coal and we (the US) consume 2.75 MILLION tons of coal PER DAY. Additionally, we consume over 20 MILLION barrels of oil PER DAY. When you wrap your head around those numbers, you quickly reach the inescapable conclusion that wind, solar, bio-fuels, etc., just won't cut it! Our only hope for deliverance from fossil fuels is for someone to invent a revolutionary new technology. So, while we're waiting for naquadah reactors, zero-point energy, matter-antimatter reactors, and cold-fusion, the only thing that even comes close is nuclear power.[/citation]
Don't forget about orbital solar collectors, that is now a viable option. That could revolutionize energy production. The US military is thinking about setting up a system to utilize this technology, once they start using it, the costs for the technology involved will drop and eventually it will make it into our public power grids.