Talk:Ultraviolet

Also, bees can see it. But why can we see this article? Totnesmartin (talk) 14:30, 16 July 2010 (UTC)
 * Not to suggest accidentally making the refrigerator explode, but I'm Curious to know if anyone has explored or is exploring the possibility of deflecting by collecting UV from the sun before it gets to the ozone layer, and collecting usable energy out of it at the same time. --Greeneggs (talk) 21:04, 24 June 2014 (UTC)
 * To what end? It's no real secret that solar panels can be more efficient outside of atmospheric constraints, but what other purpose would that serve? Keep in mind that UV radiation is still just light, so we're effectively just talking about upper atmosphere solar panels here. Also, how would you propose transferring power to the ground? - Grant (talk) 21:28, 24 June 2014 (UTC)
 * 1st Q: To counteract the bad part of ongoing ozone layer thinning that we have set in motion, and as a possibly less destructive form of energy to consume. The bad part I (presume and) refer to is a higher % of UVs getting down here -the damaging effects of that (which is not explained in the UV article, only mentioned).


 * 2nd Q: Winging this one (good question): Solar is converted to electric on the ground... I don't know if the solar or /electric energy we collect 'up there' can be laser focused to a receiver like a satellite dish or can be converted to or push some kind of radio or magnetic wave or it could be the light that goes through fiber optic. Maybe we can bring it down to the right level from which we can sort of short-jet/ 'drop' kick it down to ourselves in some kind of near-weightless light bouncy bubble balls (similar to ozone molecules but bigger) which are full of light-filled fiber optic cables with tiny mirrors in the ends which are activated to pop out or melt at just the right moment, and/or in some other type of units or form. Either could have gravity or planetary-boundary-layer friction /pressure or mass or motion-sensor or manual exe-button 'magic wand' -activated pop-out kite wings and sensor-guidance grabber thingies like what guides drones & military guidance-missiles which 'latch' on at some altitude or speed or whatever trigger, and route the benign energy bombs to a collector site. Somebody else probably has a better idea.--Greeneggs (talk) 22:22, 24 June 2014 (UTC)
 * So the better solution is probably to stop ozone layer thinning. Any attempt at filtering out UV frequencies above the atmosphere would effectively be akin to "adding" an additional ozone layer. This isn't terribly easy to do over the entire planet. As for a form of energy, this is still just solar energy, so the same restrictions apply. - Grant (talk) 22:30, 24 June 2014 (UTC)
 * Loosely speaking, no, there isn't really a way to transfer energy collected via satellite to the ground in a way that makes it easy for us to collect and use it. For one, any system that shifts the frequency spectrum of the incoming light would need to be powered. Secondly, the rest of your suggestions sound a bit far out there. What's the point in collecting energy if it costs more in power to get it down to ground level? The "bouncy ball" system you describe doesn't work. While there are ways to "trap" light, fiber optics with mirrors at the ends don't work.
 * Again though, what would be the point? Doing what you suggest in any reasonably effective manner requires shrouding most of the planet with some material that's opaque to UV radiation but not visible light. If we pretend for a moment that this wouldn't have any unforeseen consequences, we still come to the conclusion that this idea isn't at all feasible. - Grant (talk) 22:30, 24 June 2014 (UTC)


 * Basically, there's no real reason to believe this would be an effective method of stopping UV radiation, and given that conclusion, it's hard to think of a useful application of this concept that wouldn't be less cost-effective than simply collecting solar power on the ground. - Grant (talk) 22:33, 24 June 2014 (UTC)