The next eclipse that would hit in the summer (which would have tighter conditions and more reliance on solar to serve demand) won't be until August 2044. Who knows exactly what the grid will look like by then, but you will certainly see a massive dip in solar generation.
The 2044 total eclipse is the next one in summer in the contiguous US; I wonder if some sooner ones will also be interesting for this question. (I don't know enough about the worldwide geographic distribution of solar power to pick out candidates.)
[0] https://www.gridstatus.io/records/caiso?record=Maximum%20Bat...
There are more in the pipeline.
Grid scale battery storage is arriving, and I am thrilled to see it.
This also coincides with the setting of the sun, so the net load (total load less wind and solar) spikes at 6-7pm every day.
Here are a few sequential images:
https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES16/ABI/CONUS/GEOCOLOR/2...
https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES16/ABI/CONUS/GEOCOLOR/2...
https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES16/ABI/CONUS/GEOCOLOR/2...
(I'm sure there is a better way)
I was in Louisville, Ky which the last photo shows as black. But in reality we didn't even notice a change in brightness (it was cloudy).
Ultimately, the solar eclipse this weekend came and went without any noticeable impact for consumers of electricity. In my opinion, this is a very notable feat.
A well-planned and executed response by grid operators to a predictable eclipse bodes well for a future where events like a particularly cloudy day, blizzard conditions across a large area, or widespread hail damage to solar farms could reduce generation by similar MW values in the middle of the day.
As the grid becomes a more dynamic and volatile place, making operational and investment decisions based on data is more important than ever before.
If this sort of stuff interests you be sure to check out our other dashboards: https://www.gridstatus.io/home
