TAKE OUT BIG OIL--FOREVER!

[greenpagan]

Listen to all this crap about ANWR (which would just be a spit in the ocean of America’s energy needs anyway).

Who needs it?

Colonize the Moon. Turn it into a solar collector farm. Transport energy via microwave technology to Earth. Free energy for all. Case closed.

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[BushOut06]

1. Sounds like science fiction - how feasible is that?

I'm with you, I think most of our answers lie in space.

[rambler1277]

2. Nice fantasy

How about coming up with an actual idea instead of kicking your feet up in the air and crying about the oil industry? If you've actually got a better solution, I'm sure everyone would be willing to use it.

[BushOut06]

3. Why wouldn't that work?

Instead of poo-pooing an idea just because it sounds crazy, why not actually look at it? We probably have the technology to make it work. It could be done, if we had the desire to do so. Like it or not, our future lies in space. There is an endless supply of raw materials out there (asteroids, comets), and there is plenty of info out there on how to harvest these.

It's not a matter of IF we can do it, it's just a matter of who and when.

[Squeech]

4. You don't need the moon

Solar collectors in geosynchronous orbit will do, significantly cheaper.

Actually, I'd like to see humongous sheets of thin-film photovoltaics spread out all over the Arctic and Greenland ice sheets. Even if the current state of the art is not very efficient, my hope is that they'll capture and/or reflect enough sunlight to slow the thaw that's screwing up the ocean currents.

[greenpagan]

5. Re: Solar collectors in geosynchronous orbit...etc.

I agree. (However, the Moon would still be a good idea as an emergency &/or auxiliary source. What happens if solar collectors are somehow rendered useless, e.g. destroyed by collisions with astronomical bodies, space debris or sabotage ?)

What’s incredible is that --except for obstructive cloud cover--enough sunlight would shine on the continental United States to power the planet for a year.

Therefore, Weather Control technologies should also be explored & pursued.