http://www.dailykos.com/story/2014/06/25/1309388/-Solar-Panel-Acreage-Needed-to-Power-the-Entire-Planet-158-mi-x-158-mi?detail=email
The three squares on the map, below, represent how much solar panel acreage would be needed to power Germany (marked "D"), Europe (marked "EU"), and the entire planet (marked "Welt"):
Not that big, right? Just a small chunk of the Sahara Desert in Algeria.
This, according to a graduate thesis from the Technical University of Braunschweig, by Nadine May:
...an area of 254 km x 254 km would be enough to meet the total electricity demand of the world. The amount of electricity needed by the EU-25 states could be produced on an area of 110 km x 110 km. For Germany with a demand of 500 TWh/y an area of 45 km x 45 km is required, which concerns 0.03 % of all suited areas in North Africa (BMU, 2004b).http://www.dlr.de/...
That's just 158 miles x 158 miles (c. 25,000 square miles) to power the whole world. It makes one wonder why the hell we aren't doing this already, though the obvious answer is suppression from Big Oil.
I've been saying they are not enthusiastic about green on the right wing because they are so invested in fossil fuels the switch would slowly bring their monopoly to a stall but reinvesting in green fuels would bring in less money over time, you don't use up solar panels you replace here and there but you don't use them up and need more so oil barons are just like the medical industry, there is no money in the cure but a butt load in the treatment aka big pharma.
another problem to supply the world with power requires the world working together and taking a look around not anytime soon. I don't think we could do that here in America the world has a better chance than we would against tea people. but you have to feel the shame of the world that we can't come to this together. we of the world are the worlds worst enemies.
