Sunday, April 20News That Matters

Tag: solar energy

China New iDust Tool Revolutionizes Dust Storm Forecasting Boosts Solar Energy Reliability

China New iDust Tool Revolutionizes Dust Storm Forecasting Boosts Solar Energy Reliability

Breaking News, Climate Actions
In a significant leap for clean energy forecasting, scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have unveiled iDust an advanced prediction system that could transform how we manage solar power in dust-prone regions. Developed by Dr. Chen Xi and his team at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, iDust offers high-resolution, faster forecasts of dust storms, helping protect solar infrastructure and maximize power output. Dust storms common in desert and semi-arid areas, pose a major threat to solar farms by blocking sunlight and coating panels with dust, slashing their efficiency. “Dust storms not only block sunlight but also accumulate on solar panels, decreasing their power output,” said Dr. Chen, who led the study recently published in the Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Syste...
Solar Power ‘Droughts’ Rising with Climate Change Threatening Energy Access in Developing Regions

Solar Power ‘Droughts’ Rising with Climate Change Threatening Energy Access in Developing Regions

Breaking News, Climate Actions
As more communities turn to solar energy to reduce emissions and power daily life, a growing challenge is emerging solar power droughts multi-day periods when demand for solar electricity outpaces supply are becoming more frequent and severe, particularly in tropical and developing regions. A new global study by Lei et al. analyzed solar power supply and demand patterns between 1984 and 2014, identifying troubling trends. During this 30-year span areas such as the western U.S., eastern Brazil, Southeast Asia, and large parts of Africa faced at least five solar power droughts per year with the frequency of these shortages increasing by nearly 0.76 events per decade. Climate driven changes in weather and energy needs were responsible for nearly one-third of all observed droughts during th...