The Red Knight and the Dawn of the Solar Dragon, Part 1

Once upon a time, there were honest and friendly dragons who
heated the boilers for steam-powered electric turbines. The
dragons enjoyed the job and were paid good union wages. But due
to the high cost of dragon energy, the King decided that the
dragons needed to be replaced and sparked a bloody dragon war
that led to the invention of solar power...

FYI, this is a three-part episode. 

True Solar Takeaways


Fossil fuel-based generators work by burning fossil fuels,
which boil water to high temperatures. The boiled, high-pressure
water produces steam that spins an electric turbine, generating
electricity.

Unionized labor dominates the energy industry, including
solar. 

 All utilities contract or own stand-by power plants
known as "spinning reserves" or "Peaker plants." Peaker plants
run 24/7 to provide backup power for when the grid is
overloaded--typically when it's a hot summer day and more homes
and buildings are using air conditioning.

Utilities, states, and kingdoms pay a significantly higher
price for Peaker Plant energy.

 The photovoltaic effect is how solar power is produced.
When sunlight shines on a special semiconductor material, the
sunlight excites electrons and creates a flow of electricity into
a direct current. 

Tandem perovskite solar cells are coming soon. They promise
higher solar cell efficiencies (more generated solar power) at a
lower price, but as of July 2023, they haven't been
commercialized yet.

Wind power is one of the least expensive forms of energy
today.

Lithium-iron-phosphate batteries are increasingly gaining
market share for backing up solar power. 



-----


Visit ProbablyTrueSolar.com to sign up for the newsletter to
learn about new episodes and live solar storytelling events.

Support the show by visiting the merch store and buying a tee
shirt!

Learn how sponsors can be a part of Probably True Solar
Stories and tell their own creative stories.

Follow @SolarFred and/or @ProbTrueSolar on Twitter to discuss
episodes

Don't forget to:

Subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast streaming
service

Rate

Review, and

Share!