This article is incorrectly using the current rate of growth of solar, in CONSTANT terms, and not in percentage terms.
Solar panel is growing in percentage rates, as it has been doing so for the last 3 decades. IE, it increases by X% every year. When something doubles every Y years, it quickly overwhelms everything.
Today we are adding 100 gigawatts of solar per year. And in 2-3 years that rate of change is now 200 gigawatts ADDED every year, and then its 400 gigawatts per year.
Look at the chart, the numbers are correct, everything grows (in large amounts).
We are about to double the amount of fossil fueled cars in the next 10-15 years.
It will not matter how much solar we install if we keep increasing our fossil burning (as we will).
In fact, we use other sources of energy than oil to extract and refine the oil.
We are terribly addicted to oil.
One could say we sold our mother (Earth) for a shot of hubris.
It took us to the Moon and the stars. It gives and it takes lives, one could think we are dealing with the Devil.
For each day we do not decrease our fossil fuel use nothing will make a difference, the fact is that the Earth is becoming a worse place for each of those days.
Our culture is not only addicted to oil, there is a bigger picture.
Our culture is dependent on growth, hence the addiction to energy, all kinds of energy.
We will go on this way, no matter what, for as long as we can.
stale2002|8 years ago
Solar panel is growing in percentage rates, as it has been doing so for the last 3 decades. IE, it increases by X% every year. When something doubles every Y years, it quickly overwhelms everything.
Today we are adding 100 gigawatts of solar per year. And in 2-3 years that rate of change is now 200 gigawatts ADDED every year, and then its 400 gigawatts per year.
freebear|8 years ago
We are terribly addicted to oil. One could say we sold our mother (Earth) for a shot of hubris. It took us to the Moon and the stars. It gives and it takes lives, one could think we are dealing with the Devil.
For each day we do not decrease our fossil fuel use nothing will make a difference, the fact is that the Earth is becoming a worse place for each of those days. Our culture is not only addicted to oil, there is a bigger picture. Our culture is dependent on growth, hence the addiction to energy, all kinds of energy. We will go on this way, no matter what, for as long as we can.
crowbahr|8 years ago
That said: the longer that it takes to get that exponential; the more there is in the atmosphere.
I wonder how those curves compare to linear and where break even is...