illuminating science

For those of you who just joined us, I live in Australia and if there’s one thing we’ve got a lot of, it’s sunshine (yes, even more than kangaroos!) Therefore, it really makes sense for us to be looking towards solar energy to supply our electricity. Here at UQ, we have groups working on new, innovative innovative solar cells, made out of plastic or even melanin, the skin pigment. Hopefully, these will have higher efficiencies than existing technology, making solar energy more cost effective.

But that’s not the only option. Australia is planning to build a giant one-kilometre high Solar Tower that will generate as much power as a small nuclear reactor, but completely renewable and with no waste. A bit like the Parkes Observatory, it will be in the middle of a sheep paddock, and will become the tallest building in the world. It works by heating air in the base which rises, reaching speeds of 50km/hr and turning a turbine. Solar cells store energy during the day so the tower can run 24 hours.

Particularly after seeing the talks on global warming at the recent AIP Congress, I’m amazed (and more than a little scared) at how little governments around the world are doing to explore new energy technologies. It’s great to see Australia taking steps forward, even if the government has so far only offered “support” with no dollars. Apparently, the company involved also has a deal with China, so with any luck these towers will prove to be at least a partial solution to the world’s energy needs. Also, by becoming the tallest building in the world and hopefully a bit of a landmark (or something!) it might promote this and other renewable technologies to other governments and businesses. And, imagine if we could do a Giant Drop off one of those!