While the volcano cooling venture may create a lucrative power-generating opportunity, it could also potentially cause a catastrophic eruption.
NASA scientists have reportedly designed a way to avert a disaster which may threaten mankind’s continued existence – the threat of Yellowstone supervolcano eruption.
Brian Wilcox of the NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab explained to BBC that the US space agency plans to “drill up to 10km down into the supervolcano, and pump down water at high pressure,” thus slowly extracting heat from it.
He noted that while the cost of this venture is estimated at $3.46 billion, it may also present an interesting investment opportunity as the volcano, which “currently leaks around 6GW in heat,” can be essentially converted into a huge geothermal plant which would generate “electric power at extremely competitive prices of around $0.10/kWh.”
“You would have to give the geothermal companies incentives to drill somewhat deeper and use hotter water than they usually would, but you would pay back your initial investment, and get electricity which can power the surrounding area for a period of potentially tens of thousands of years. And the long-term benefit is that you prevent a future supervolcano eruption which would devastate humanity,” he explained.
Wilcox also remarked that the drilling project must be handled with utmost care as a slightest mistake might actually trigger the eruption the scientists are trying to prevent.
As BBC points out, a powerful supervolcano eruption might trigger a “prolonged volcanic winter”, with the resulting crop failure putting mankind on the brink of starvation as “food reserves worldwide would last 74 days”, according to the 2012 UN estimates.
That’s funny: He gives the impression of knowing what he is doing; so, what can possibly go wrong, eh?
Even with the atomic bomb project, Oppenheimer feared there was an outside chance the nuclear device could set the whole atmosphere on fire, hence the name Trinity site.
Nothing ever goes wrong when drilling, so it should be ok. Its not like we ever had a well blow out like in the ocean or whatever.
We already know how this ends.
https://www.intellihub.com/extinction-level-event-to-hit-u-s-2024-projections-show-u-s-population-reduced-by-262-million-people-over-next-7-years-gdp-reduced-by-17b/
We never went to the Moon.
Just saying.
I was going to suggest they put the extra heat from Yellowstone on the moon.
The hubris is stunning, no?
Maybe killing millions of people and making 2/3 of the US uninhabitable is the intended outcome?
The project has been assigned to the diversity team…..
Another hardee harhar joke.
I had imagined the diversity effort was another name for affirmative action. Instead, it is an effort to change the mono-culture mindset of the 50’s into an atmosphere of inclusiveness.
There was an old cartoon – a guy runs into the security office, ‘there’s a whole bunch of weird people running around here.’ The other guy says, ‘talk to the boss, he hired them.’
Diversity is about recognizing the talent of dwarfs, racists, mental midgets, inbreds, ugly dudes, lickspittles and even Hillarites.
What a waste of electrons.
Here, hold my beer. 🙂
(I know it’s breakfast time, but somewhere near a volcano it’s happy hour.)
If it works, don’t mess with it.
My guess is they will f it up and should leave it the f alone.
Geo Thermal power might be a good idea. Cooling down a super volcano,Really?
It’s not rocket science.
here’s what would happen (watch to end):
So, NASA has a plan to kill us all, … which is nice.
Fuck me. Nice find.
Another, not quite the same, but you can get the same general idea:
Reminds me of fellow Texans who threw warm water on ice coated windshields during the ubiquitous winter ice storms. They had no clue that the expansion of the ice/glass was something to behold. It was really something when a salesman for an exotic car business did it to a Ferrari 308 GTB…..
Ouch!
So, they’ll use boiling water to lance a boil?
Government and CRONY (versus free market – let’s be clear) capitalists will surely be the death of us all.
These people are reckless idiots…fortunately, this scheme won’t be funded.
I have a hunch that one hole cannot quench the whole super-volcano. The heat would be better utilized to produce distilled water from sea water and electricity would be the by-product. It’s scientific and economic potential is huge but I believe Democrat Politicians could turn it into a socialist nightmare (ref Mexican, Venezuelan and Saudi oil governance).
I see the word “incentives” in there. BOHICA.
We’re from the gub’mint & we’re here to help.
Old news.
This was discussed years ago.
Is it a good idea or a bad one?
If it blows, this will look like a good idea passed by.
If it’s done and then blows, people will be lynched as the ash falls.
There is a fiction book series “Yellowstone” by Bobby Akart which contains good descriptions of the downside.
Be assured what ever we great unwashed are told how we will benefit how great the plan is and how much we will save for the investment , it will cost at least double not work well and any positive will be wiped out by the negatives we will be told do not exist !
If we at lucky it will just not pay off at a huge expense !