You often hear that extra power stations have to be put on-line in the UK during ad breaks for popular TV shows because of everyone making a cup of tea. Is this really true, and if so does national power usage in the UK vary more than in other similar countries?
鈥� As demand for power rises, power companies do indeed bring extra generators on-line to cope. These companies would love to be able to hold electricity in batteries for such events as advert breaks, morning coffee and evening meal times, but there is no efficient way of storing the alternating current power stations generate, given that it needs to be converted to and from direct current for storage.
Demand for power is monitored and controlled on a minute-by-minute basis from a central control station. Sophisticated prediction software, using many years鈥� worth of data (and the TV listings), helps to keep the system running as efficiently as possible. But even with this, unusual shifts in weather can affect how stations are controlled. For instance, a cold spell will affect demand because people turn on extra heating to keep warm. If there is less wind, more power stations will need to start up because wind generators are not able to work.
Advertisement
All countries similar to the UK have the same problems and in 1986 a 2000-megawatt high-voltage link between the UK and France was installed. This enables the two countries to share electricity during demand peaks on either side of the channel. It saves the need to bring too many power stations on-line because demand peaks in France rarely coincide with those in the UK 鈥� except, that is, during half and full time of Six Nations rugby union matches!
The UK now also has similar connections with the Netherlands and the Republic of Ireland.
Paul Keddie Llangollen, Denbighshire, UK
We pay 拢25 for every answer published in 快猫短视频. To answer this question 鈥� or ask a new one 鈥� visit newscientist.com/lastword. Terms and conditions apply.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淪urge protector鈥�