[Mariner]

We sit on enough geothermal energy to power us for 10,000 lifetimes or more.

Whomever figure out a safe and cost-effective way to harness it will become very, very rich.

It SEEMS simple in theory: Drill a hole and put a pipe in it...pump water through the pipe...create steam etc.

Surely one would not have to drill deeper than 20 or 30 miles. Heck, even if 100 miles it seems achievable.

[ckilmer]

Whomever figure out a safe and cost-effective way to harness it will become very, very rich.
............
Likely this has already been done.

People just haven’t figured out how to make the transition.

We’re talking about fracking. The drill down 6-8 thousand feet, then drill sideways, then pump a solution into the rock to crack it open to let the gas flow.

Same thing could be done for hot rock. only instead of bringing up gas and oil—they bring up hot water and steam or something that steams at a lower temperature.

[Flag_This]

"Whomever figure out a safe and cost-effective way to harness it will become very, very rich.

"Five major geothermal power plants exist in Iceland, which produce approximately 26.2% (2010)[1] of the nation's energy. In addition, geothermal heating meets the heating and hot water requirements of approximately 87% of all buildings in Iceland."

Link

[Colinsky]

Whomever figure out a safe and cost-effective way to harness it will become very, very rich.

The problem so far is that the heat and fluids are so corrosive that any and all electricity generation machinery conks out in a hurry.

[Red Badger]

It SEEMS simple in theory: Drill a hole and put a pipe in it...

One word: VOLCANO...............