re: #135 steve_davis

If I had access to a big chunk of the Sahara, I would be wracking my brains trying to figure out how to build a terrawatt-capable solar plant there, and to get the electricity to any place in Africa that was willing to build infrastructure to tap into it. That just seems like a place where you can mostly count on the sun, day in and day out.

Probably wind available as well. Unfortunately I expect sand+wind is probably complete hell on equipment, solar panels, and windmill blades.

Though I’d be curious if there would be an alternate (though probably even less efficient than solar panels) method to make use of consistent sun and high temps. Perhaps some sort of fluid heat exchange unit using the sun and perhaps mirrors to “use” solar to make steam to run a turbine for generating electricity.