Charles Talleyrand <kitplane01@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> Lets suppose I've got *lots* of energy to spend, and I only want to
> heat just *one* city. I'd like to raise the ambient temperature 20
> degrees above the surrounding area. YOU ARE LIMITED TO CURRENT
> TECHNOLOGY, but have a VERY VERY LARGE BUDGET. What might be the best
> way to do it? And about-sort-of how much energy might this take?
[snip]
> Ideas: Run hot water under every street and sidewalk
> Good: Nice even heating
> Good: No need for snow removal
> Bad: Needs lots of piping
> Bad: Might lose lots of heat down into the Earth
I think that you will reach equilibrium fairly quickly. Remember that the
Earth gets warmer as you go down. I don't know how far down you need to go
to get a 20 degree rise, but once you heat all that rock you'll "only"
lose heat to the sides.
Anyway, depending on exactly how you define this measurement, there are
two cheats:
- If you're only concerned about average temperature over some period,
merely light the city on fire. You ought to get an average temperature way
above ambient for hours or days, and then once it goes out you can wait
until the average for the period in question drops to 20 above ambient.
- If you want it to last indefinitely but are once again only concerned
about the average temperature, merely set off a nuclear bomb at the
appropriate interval over the city.
Slightly less crazy, another poster mentioned doming the city. I'd submit
that a dome is impractical and unnecessary, and all you need to do is
*roof* it (and possibly wall it) with glass. Build a literal greenhouse,
and the rest takes care of itself. If it doesn't, telling all the
residents to leave their heaters on all of the time should finish the job.
(Figuring out how to keep all the pollution from getting trapped and
killing everyone is Somebody Else's Problem.)
Having a perpetual 20 degree hot spot would do interesting things to the
local weather.
--
Michael Ash
Rogue Amoeba Software
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