Desert solar and wind power generation

Could large solar farms in the Sahara Desert redistribute solar power?

Large solar farms in the Sahara Desert could redistribute solar power generation potential locally as well as globally through disturbance of large-scale atmospheric teleconnections, according to simulations with an Earth system model.

How do wind and solar farms affect the Sahara Desert?

Even in the Sahara, the wind and solar farms impacts also depend on their specific location and spatial distribution, with uneven impacts when deployed with different spatial configurations (i.e., the “checkerboard” and “quarter” wind farm experiments represented in fig. S9).

Do environmental challenges affect solar PV performance in desert regions?

This study has positively pinpointed the environmental challenges that can affect the performance of solar PV technologies in desert regions. The effect of dust (depositional rates, carbonates and mud content), humidity and solar radiation on the power efficiency of solar panels was observed.

Are desert solar farms sustainable?

The scoring result demonstrates that global deserts have obvious patchy distribution of site suitability for building solar farms. Our study contributes to optimizing the site selection of desert solar farms, which aligns with the United Nations sustainability development goals for achieving affordable and clean energy target by 2030.

Can desert environments reduce solar energy production?

The potential sites for wind farm establishment were identified. In desert regions, several environmental challenges have the potential to reduce solar energy production. These are the formation of thinly crusted mud and/or carbonates coatings caused from deposited dust aerosols during humid conditions and other weather conditions.

Can wind and solar farms be used together in the Sahara?

When wind and solar farms are deployed together in the Sahara, changes in climate are enhanced.