EigoPro 準2級プラス 読解 — Power From the Sun and Wind

Power From the Sun and Wind For more than a century, the world has run mostly on fuels such as coal, oil, and gas. These fuels gave us electricity, cars, and modern life. But they also release gases that harm the environment, and one day they will run out. This is why countries are turning to "renewable energy" — power from sources that never disappear, such as the sun and the wind. Clean and Endless The greatest advantage of renewable energy is clear. Unlike coal or oil, sunlight and wind will never be used up, and they produce almost no harmful gases. A single hour of sunlight falling on the Earth contains more energy than the whole world uses in a year. The challenge has always been how to capture and store that energy at a reasonable cost. Falling Costs For a long time, renewable energy was expensive. Only a few rich countries could afford solar panels and wind farms. In recent years, however, the cost has fallen dramatically. In many places, electricity from the sun or wind is now cheaper than electricity from coal. As a result, even developing countries are building large solar farms. The Storage Problem There is, however, one major difficulty. The sun does not shine at night, and the wind does not always blow. To use renewable energy all the time, we need better batteries that can store power for later use. Scientists around the world are racing to solve this problem, and progress is being made every year. A Brighter Future The change will not happen overnight, but the direction is clear. Many experts believe that within a few decades, most of the world's electricity will come from clean, renewable sources. As one engineer said, "The sun sends us a bill that never comes. We just have to learn how to use it."

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