Some of that sudden increase in demand is offset by a corresponding uptick in solar generation, if available on the grid, and wind power-assuming the wind’s blowing at the time. So when some 18 million residential AC units, plus all of the commercial units, kick in across the West, it increases the demand-or load-on the respective electricity grids significantly. A 2013 study found that during extreme heat events, about half of all electricity use goes toward space-cooling of some sort. On a summer’s afternoon, as the temperature rises, thermostats signal air-conditioners to start running in order to keep homes and businesses comfortable and-in some cases-survivable. In the West, we get our power from the Western Interconnect, which is actually broken up into about 38 separate grids, each with its own heart and brain and organs. If demand kicks up, then the grid operators (the brain) have to increase the output of the “heart” accordingly. The supply of power generated must always be equal to the collective demand. To continue with the body metaphor, the grid has a heart, made up of all of the generators such as power plants and wind farms and so forth a circulation system made up of arteries (high voltage transmission lines) and capillaries (distribution lines that carry power to your home or business) and organs, or the electricity consumers. Which is why during heatwaves like this one-that threatens to drag on in varying degrees of intensity throughout the summer-the power often goes out, right when folks need it most to keep their homes habitable. And just as excessive heat can ripple through the vital organs of the body, so too can it trigger chain reactions and feedback loops in the power system that keeps society churning along. Now, the electricity grid is not a living organism, but it can behave like one in a variety of ways. Heat-associated deaths by year in Maricopa County, Arizona.
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