Here’s fun fact: the world’s deepest manmade hole goes 15 kilometers into the ground. They stopped drilling at the 15th kilometer because it got too hot at the bottom of the hole. Welcome to geothermal energy, the reason most religions depict Hell as a place deep underground and the reason why we may succeed in building a clean energy future for the planet without turning it into a disco ball of solar panels.
Geothermal energy is, simply put, heat; heat that is generated from the decay of radioactive elements in the planet’s mantle. The amount of energy this heat translates into is stunning. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, just 33,000 feet below the Earth’s surface there is 50,000 times more energy than the energy all the oil and gas in the world can produce. This energy can be harnessed and used for heating and power generation.
Of course, from a driller’s perspective, 33,000 feet, which is equal to 10 kilometers, is not exactly a small distance to drill. Yet it is not impossible as those engineers in the ‘80s demonstrated with their 15-km hole. We just need to develop the drilling technology….CLICK for complete article
