Elon Musk Explains How Many Solar Panels Are Needed To Power The U.S.

Tesla is no longer just an electric car company. The acquisition of SolarCity has made it a major player in the green energy segment as well. It’s now selling solar panels and battery backups to customers that want to shift to this renewable source of energy. Tesla has already undertaken big projects that involve supplying power to entire islands with just solar panels but could the same be done for an industrialized behemoth like the United States? Tesla co-founder and CEO Elon Musk believes so.

At a National Governors Association meeting last week, Musk told thirty state governors just how much land is required to install enough solar panels to power the United States on solar energy alone.

“If you wanted to power the entire United States with solar panels, it would take a fairly small corner of Nevada or Texas or Utah; you only need about 100 miles by 100 miles of solar panels to power the entire United States,” Musk said.

The batteries that will be required to store the energy generated by the panels will be 1 mile by 1 mile. This one square-mile is effectively going to ensure 24/7 power generated by harnessing the sun’s power alone.

Obviously, the cost involved in this endeavor will be significant so while it sounds like a good idea on paper, it may be a while before the entire country can be shifted to solar energy.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Green
Tags: elon musk, solar energy, Tesla, _cool