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Started By
Message
re: Apparently in the future data will be processed at solar-powered, orbital data centers.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:11 pm to LSURussian
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:11 pm to LSURussian
hope nobody trips over it
0
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:12 pm to NukemVol
quote:
Going to need a capacity factor batter than 10% to pull that off.
That's detail they always miss, solar and wind are bottom of the barrel on that metric and always will be.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:18 pm to GRTiger
quote:
It is by far the most ultimate source.
Wrong, that would be a fusion reactor. Second would be any number of modern fission reactors, reactors with cores the size of a mini-fridge that can output several megawatts of heat. Scalable, safe, needing to be refueled once every several decades, and unbeatable capacity factor. Solar will never do that.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:18 pm to hawgfaninc
quote:
Dyson sphere
Like the vacuum?
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:21 pm to Clames
quote:
Solar will never do that.
Yea it will. You're judging solar based on current capabilities. I'm speaking of the potential.
To be clear, solar in its current form is not the ultimate power source. But it will be.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:33 pm to GEAUXLPOST
quote:
If it is possible for these celestial data centers to orbit at a speed that would keep them in the shaded/dark side of earth at all times, wouldn't that solve the cooling issue that make data centers high electricity and water consumers? -250f on the shaded side should keep things nice and cool. +250f on the sunny side, not so much.
So your idea to make solar power stations perform better is to keep them in the dark?
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:38 pm to grizzlylongcut
quote:
Is nuclear not better and renewable?
I am not sure how literal you want to be but the sun provides practically endless power via nuclear fusion.
This post was edited on 1/29/26 at 5:38 pm
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:52 pm to GRTiger
quote:
You're judging solar based on current capabilities
I'm basing it on the ground truth that there simply isn't enough sunlight striking Earth in the areas required for that to be feasible. Even in the absolute hottest areas along the equator, the amount peaks around 1kw/m^2. That's the absolute best that can be expected. In a square meter I can put my 4kw generator, gas can, and produce more power, more reliably. It will take quantum leaps in materials science and engineering to make solar as feasible as you believe, high temperature superconductors that aren't even on the technological horizon yet. Rare earth materials required will also be a bottleneck, there may not be enough of them on Earth and mining in space is a hell of a long way off. No, nuclear is a vastly more realistic option for meeting future energy demands reliably.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:55 pm to NukemVol
quote:
Buddy said ultimate source for the world. Going to need a capacity factor batter than 10% to pull that off.
You're right. I just noticed who you were responding to. We're not anywhere near it being the best for generation here on earth
Posted on 1/29/26 at 5:56 pm to joshnorris14
quote:
I am not sure how literal you want to be but the sun provides practically endless power via nuclear fusion.
Sounds like it would be a good idea to bring such power closer to home then. Relatively small fusion reactor installations that can provide GW-levels of power day and night, everyday for decades on end without the continuous diminishment that PV cells exhibit sounds better.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 6:16 pm to grizzlylongcut
quote:
Is nuclear not better and renewable?
You looking for the right answers.
You might should be looking for the right questions.
The sun (aka nuclear fission plant for our solar system) is the answer. It is the is. It’s there. Doing its thing. For billions of years. Renewing life on and on. The is. Just look up.
How do we harness it? The right question.
The answer has been given. It is the way. Along with the most abundant element in the universe. Hydrogen. Also the answer. Just need the right questions.
Keep going, Elon.
This post was edited on 1/29/26 at 6:19 pm
Posted on 1/29/26 at 6:17 pm to NukemVol
quote:
Clouds
Thats where the storage part comes in.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 6:22 pm to Clames
quote:
Solar will never do that
The difference between Elon and most of us. Exemplified right here.
What is vs what can (and will) be.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 6:58 pm to Everyday Is Saturday
Elon can't beat the laws of physics.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 7:11 pm to Clames
quote:
Elon can't beat the laws of physics.
Nope. U R right.
Nuclear model is central tenet to life. That’s the answer. The good book says so at get-go. Let there be light!
Needs new questions:
Second Law of Thermodynamics - efficiency < 100% for any solar device. Damn entropy!
Perhaps this is an economics problem then?
How does one define the economics, value chain, it limits…? Is it possible to create an economic model that more than offsets entropy?
Let’s have a think! Elon will push the limits. Finally!!
Posted on 1/29/26 at 7:33 pm to T1gerNate
So that is how the Borg was created
Posted on 1/29/26 at 8:27 pm to Everyday Is Saturday
Are you drunk?
Im pretty damn sure the US Navy would have a fusion reactor right now if it were feasible.
quote:
Hydrogen. Also the answer. Just need the right questions.
Im pretty damn sure the US Navy would have a fusion reactor right now if it were feasible.
Posted on 1/29/26 at 10:42 pm to grizzlylongcut
quote:
Uh, naw.
DON'T care to elaborate?
Posted on 1/29/26 at 10:43 pm to GRTiger
quote:
We will be a fully solar powered world as soon as we figure out how to harness and store it efficiently. It's the ultimate renewable energy.
You can already do it. Our ranch system hasn’t consumed a single watt from the utility company in 4 years. I have over ten thousand assets at work that can do the same thing.
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