#Can we build and fill enough power storage to survive an ice age?

44 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

fading obsidian
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Are we at a point where we can conceivably store enough power to keep a sufficient sample size of humans alive through an ice age?

AI says we aren't even close to the tech we'd need and it'd also require us to build out extensive underground spaces that can provide enough insulation to mitigate the energy costs of keeping enough of us and our food supplies alive.

Certainly if we unlock fusion power the need to store power would diminish, and we'd probably initially welcome an ice age if the global power consumption is throttled by planetary temps... but the scale we'd need to house and farm a diverse enough genetic sample, plus enough redundant backups/spare parts for the long haul, it's hard to really imagine?

turbid fable
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Geothermal energy

fading obsidian
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Yeah I wonder if it's just a matter of making sure we have enough equipment and power to keep boring deeper into geothermal wells?
Building a radon safe bunker deep enough underground that it's nicely insulated seems hard enough before you toss in the size requirements for food and generations of people.
Heck even if we make huge advances in cryogenics and people spend most of the time on ice it could still be a crazy effort to maintain for the duration? 🤔

hidden hedge
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Nukes that need no engineered cooilng, just keepem on the surface XD

fading obsidian
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Yeah if we had enough prep time we could bum rush an ice age with excessive power generation and turn it from a period of hibernation into a chance to flourish via efforts to efficiently take advantage of the power?

sage drum
fading obsidian
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We'd aim for the shorter ones, under 100,000 years ideally. LOL

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I was worried someone would ask for the definition of "flourish". 😓

golden geyser
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you wouldn’t be able to grow anything

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but there would probably be a island somewhere

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it would be possible

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but probably not actually happen LOL

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also

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how big of a ice age is it

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like some ice ages were a few degrees lower

turbid fable
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Fwiw the worst ice ages in the past million years left tropic areas, rainforests, and deserts around the globe. Artic areas just extended further from the poles. I'm not even sure if there's ever been a global freeze "ice age" that froze everything including the equator

golden geyser
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like everyone should just move to the equator

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idk

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or deal with it 💀

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unless it’s like this ice age actually froze everyone

turbid fable
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The most recent ice age extended as far south as the hudson valley (americas)/france (europe). There were still native people groups living north of those boundaries

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From a modern perspective that would be devestating to our agricultural industries because they're so highly optimized for the existing climate

golden geyser
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yeah

turbid fable
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It'd just be a matter of adapting and importing from the newly temperate tropics

golden geyser
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i think for this example, it would probably be like if it fully froze

fading obsidian
golden geyser
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like the sun just shut off one day LOL

golden geyser
turbid fable
golden geyser
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have to heat up the atmosphere

turbid fable
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Maybe in a thousand years you'd have to worry about mountain sized glaciers crushing your home as they slide down valleys

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In the near term though it'd have almost no impact outside of being cooler

golden geyser
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glaciers are cool

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let’s bring them back

fading obsidian
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Crust movement should be a huge PITA for trying to hide underground too.
Just drill deep geothermal wells and live in floating hot air cities?
As the temps drop the balloons would get more boyant right? 🤔

golden geyser
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or

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we start nuking the earth

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make it warm again

fading obsidian
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Making ice is confusing because we have to generate a lot of heat to make it and then it wants to melt extra fast due to all the heat.
To heck with that!

golden geyser