Solar panels cover the roof of UCI's Student Center Parking Structure. A new study co-authored by Steven Davis, associate professor of Earth system science, shows that the U.S. can meet 80 percent of its electricity demand with renewable solar and wind resources. Credit: Steve Zylius / UCI
Investment in greater storage, transmission capabilities needed
sciencedaily.com - University of California - Irvine - February 27, 2018
Summary: The United States could reliably meet about 80 percent of its electricity demand with solar and wind power generation, according to scientists.
The United States could reliably meet about 80 percent of its electricity demand with solar and wind power generation, according to scientists at the University of California, Irvine; the California Institute of Technology; and the Carnegie Institution for Science.
However, meeting 100 percent of electricity demand with only solar and wind energy would require storing several weeks' worth of electricity to compensate for the natural variability of these two resources, the researchers said.
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Study: Wind and Solar Can Power Most of the United States
Wind, solar, and storage could meet 90–100% of America’s electricity needs
theguardian.com - by John Abraham - March 26, 2018
. . . Some people doubt how much wind and solar can supply to a country’s electricity grid. This is a particularly challenging question to answer in part because both solar power and wind power fluctuate in both space and time. We all know solar panels work well during the day, when the sun shines – they don’t work so well at night. And wind turbines only send electrons when the wind is blowing.
Fortunately, these two sources of energy fluctuate in ways that complement each other.
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