Power in Atlantis

[Daedalus-304]

I was watching this show on renewable energy on the History channel last night, and suddenly I thought of something: Why is Atlantis and many other Ancient devices use only ZPMs for a power source. While ZPMs would be needed for shields and wormholes to earth, wouldn't the Ancients have the technology to just suck energy out of the air or something. They could have placed some kind of solar generators within the walls of the city. Not only that, Atlantis is on an Ocean, imagine how much energy could harvested from that alone.

[freyr's mother]

I was watching this show on renewable energy on the History channel last night, and suddenly I thought of something: Why is Atlantis and many other Ancient devices use only ZPMs for a power source. While ZPMs would be needed for shields and wormholes to earth, wouldn't the Ancients have the technology to just suck energy out of the air or something. They could have placed some kind of solar generators within the walls of the city. Not only that, Atlantis is on an Ocean, imagine how much energy could harvested from that alone.

The output from a ZPM is far more than the sum total of all the energy sources you just listed. And many hundreds, thousands or hundreds of thousands of times that sum total.

[Dutch_Razor]

Green energy doesn't work...

It's like a H2O molecule on a hot trinium plate..

[Daedalus-304]

I don't mean to replace the ZPMs just to add power and conserve ZPMs. Take a look at lighting during the Storm and the Eye, it was enough to power the shields.

[freyr's mother]

I don't mean to replace the ZPMs just to add power and conserve ZPMs. Take a look at lighting during the Storm and the Eye, it was enough to power the shields.

Because lightning has millions of volts of energy.

[jds1982]

No I see what he's saying. ZPM's eventually run out, why not conserve them? If the Ancients had used solar power, or ocean current power, to power lights and toilets and junk, they could have left the ZPM for the more energy intensive things. I realize the energy output of ZPMs is tremendous, but it never hurts to supplement your energy supply.

Originally posted by frey's mother
Because lightning has millions of volts of energy.

Yes enough to power a flux capacitor.

[freyr's mother]

No I see what he's saying. ZPM's eventually run out, why not conserve them? If the Ancients had used solar power, or ocean current power, to power lights and toilets and junk, they could have left the ZPM for the more energy intensive things. I realize the energy output of ZPMs is tremendous, but it never hurts to supplement your energy supply.

That's only if you don't know how to make more ZPM's, and the ancients knew how to so....

[jds1982]

All I'm saying is it couldn't hurt to do it.

[Drewzy]

That's only if you don't know how to make more ZPM's, and the ancients knew how to so....

Yes, exactly...they would mix all components together and stick it in the Ancient ZPM oven. They called it some else... of course.

But I see what you're saying. Current Atlantis dwellers could play around with the idea and utilize solar power, etc for any conservation of ZPM's...no matter how tiny that could be, it could add up.

[Giantevilhead]

The amount of solar/wind/wave energy they can get is insignificant compared to what ZPM's provide. It would be like using hamster wheels and a nuclear reactor to power a city. Naquadah/Naquadria and nuclear energy are probably the only secondary form of energy the Ancients would consider given the space they have.

[K-9]

You're asking why not use these other power sources, yet the Ancients had you beat. Why not use subspace?

[freyr's mother]

You're asking why not use these other power sources, yet the Ancients had you beat. Why not use subspace?

Because you'll tear a hole in it if it is not an artificially created mini universe.

[K-9]

I meant that the Ancients decided on - why not use an artificial subspace.

[Tassadar]

well while all these other powersources would have helped, you have to rem that the ancients had their heads up their butts. they probably thought that there would be no need for such premitive power sources when they had zpms.

[ur uncle urgo]

zme is so much more efficent i heard some where like 1 cm of space has enough power in it to burn off the worlds oceans so 1cm=all oceans i think they have a better chance at looking for more zpms than havesting energy from the oceans and sun