Joe Schnaier: the Sun asThe Ultimate Power Source

Global warning and a lot of our environmental woes are products of too much power generation from fossil fuel generating plants. As a world renowned environmentalist, Joe Schnaier knows that a systematic reduction of fossil fuel generating plants is a key to restoring the ecological balance. As a businessman also, Joe Schnaier cannot set aside the potential of power from an alternative source that may be sold to consumers in the future. Environmentalists know that the wind is a potential power source, but it is unpredictable and unstable. The sun however is predictable and stable; the sun as the ultimate power source is a goal worth achieving.

With an 18 year stint at Edison, a power company that has projects in alternative energy sources, Joe Schnaier is now channelling the vision for a green, alternative power source at Brightsource Energy Inc. Based in California, Brightsource is into developing and financing solar power plants; the kind of which can power not just a single home but power even a city. By harnessing the force and power of the sun, modern solar power plants can generate and store power which can later be distributed to factories, cities and homes. Since, solar power plants do not generate any kind of emission, it is an environmental success.

Solar panels have long been used to catch and harness the power of the sun. The problem with older versions of solar panel and solar power plants is that the power generated is not enough; the power is inadequate to be able to activate equipment that requires more than merely kilowatts of electricity. The newer versions and modern solar power plants can generate bigger electrical outputs and in effect are adequate for modern day power requirements. Joe Schnaier knows the future of power is the sun, the ultimate power source.

While perfection is an elusive commodity in many things, great strides have been made in the design, development, installation, production and actual usage of modern solar power plants. The desert and places where there is much sunshine are ideal candidates for the installation of modern solar power plants; but futurists have imagined and envisioned satellites orbiting the earth and beaming beacons of concentrated light on solar powered receiving stations. The idea may be a far-fetched and a stuff of sci-fi, but who knows, environmentalists and green activists like Joe Schnaier may come up with a similar or maybe a better idea. The premise that the sun will be the ultimate power source can then be a reality.