MASSIVE SOLAR POWER INCREASE WOULD DAMAGE THE CLIMATE, SAYS STUDY
New research published in the scientific journal
Geophysical Research Letters indicates a solar farm covering 20 percent or more of the Sahara Desert could (in theory) provide enough electricity to power the world. However, the same research indicates it would probably result in profound global environmental harm, including a redistribution of precipitation that would cause droughts in various regions, an increase in global surface temperatures, and ice loss. If this research is correct, large-scale development of solar power, often proposed as a way to reduce fossil fuel use (and thus reduce greenhouse gas emissions and thus supposedly reduce climate change), would actually exacerbate environmental problems, including global warming.