[HQRP] Just the thing to power your QRP setup

[Glen Reid]

>World's biggest battery
>switched on in Alaska
>
>By Edmund Conway
>
>28/08/2003
>
>
>The world's biggest battery was plugged in yesterday to provide emergency 
>power to one of the United States' most isolated cities.
>
>The rechargable battery, which at 2,000 square metres is bigger than a 
>football pitch and weighs 1,300 tonnes, was manufactured by power 
>components specialist ABB (See http://www.abb.com/) to provide electricity 
>to Fairbanks, Alaska's second-largest city, in the event of a blackout.
>
>Stored in a warehouse near the city, where temperatures plunge to -51 
>degrees Centigrade in winter, the battery will provide 40 megawatts of 
>power - enough for around 12,000 people - for up to seven minutes.
>
>This is enough time, according to ABB, to start up diesel generators to 
>restore power, an important safeguard since at such low temperatures, 
>water pipes can freeze entirely in two hours.
>
>With no power lines between the state and the rest of America, Alaska is 
>often described as an "electrical island" where tough environmental 
>conditions and a sparse population make power cuts a way of life.
>
>ABB's battery, the first of its scale in the world, was commissioned by 
>Golden Valley Electrical Association (GVEA)
>(See http://www.gvea.com/index.php)  in Fairbanks, because the city 
>suffers total blackouts every two or three years, as well as frequent 
>swings in power supply.
>
>The earthquake-proof contraption contains 13,760 NiCad cells - bigger 
>versions of those used in many portable electronic appliances including 
>laptop computers and radios. Each cell measures 16in by 21in and weighs 
>more than 12 stone.
>
>/

GLEN REID
k5fx@arrl.net
Austin, Texas

"The only difference between genius and stupidity is that...genius has its 
limits"