QUICK NEWS, April 8: What Human Greenhouse Gases Are Doing; The Global Potential Of Pumped Hydro Storage

What Human Greenhouse Gases Are Doing Humans Have Caused the Most Dramatic Climate Change in 3 Million Years

Stephanie Pappas, April 3, 2019 (LiveScience)

“The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere today is likely higher than it has been anytime in the past 3 million years…[and] could bring temperatures not seen over that entire timespan…[Computer modeling of the Quaternary period, which started around 2.59 million years ago and continues into today, show] Earth has undergone a number of changes, but none so rapid as those seen today…[The Quaternary period began with a period of glaciation, but] between 1.25 million and 0.7 million years ago, these glacial and interglacial cycles stretched out, re-occurring every 100,000 years or so, a phenomenon called the mid-Pleistocene transition…[It was apparently caused by volcanic and weathering changes that led to carbon dioxide declines and] less heat being trapped…

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[The climate would have cooled to the point where large ice sheets could form more easily… These resilient ice sheets, plus a cooler climate, resulted in the longer glacial cycles seen after about a million years ago…[The modeling] suggests that carbon dioxide was below 400 parts per million for the entire Quaternary period. Today, the global average is 405 parts per million and rising…[Around 2.5 million years ago, average global temperatures were temporarily about 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degree Celsius) higher than average before the widespread use of fossil fuels…[But] the globe is 2.1 degrees F (1.2 degrees C) warmer than the pre-industrial average…” click here for more

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The Global Potential Of Pumped Hydro Storage Huge Global Study Just Smashed One of The Last Major Arguments Against Renewables

David Nield, 31 March 2019 (Science Alert)

“…[S]cientists have identified 530,000 sites worldwide suitable for pumped-hydro energy storage, capable of storing more than enough energy to power the entire planet…Pumped-hydro is one of the best technologies we have for storing intermittent renewable energy, such as solar power, which means these sites could act as giant batteries, helping to support cheap, fully renewable power grids…[Further on-the-ground research needs to be done…[to verify previous assumptions that sites were too limited] to store enough renewable energy for high-demand times…[T]hese hundreds of thousands of sites have the potential to store around 22 million Gigawatt-hours (GWh) of energy…

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[Only a small fraction of the sites identified by algorithmic studies would] support a 100 percent renewable global electricity system…[by using mainly] solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power to pump water uphill when the renewables are plentiful…[so that the water could later] be released and pulled down by gravity to drive turbines and generate electricity…None of the potential sites are located inside national parks or urban areas, and each one has the potential capacity to hold 2-150 GWh of energy…What makes pumped-hydro energy storage so appealing is that it can be adapted as electricity demands change. Water stored in the reservoir can be discharged as and when it's needed…[and can operate fossil fuel-free] at maximum power for between 5 and 25 hours…” click here for more

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