geothermal
adjective
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Geothermal comes partly from the Greek thermos, "hot". Most geothermal electricity is provided by power plants situated in areas where there is significant activity of the Earth's great tectonic plates—often the same areas where volcanoes are found. But hot water from deep underground may be used by cities far from volcanoes to heat buildings or sidewalks. And a newer source of geothermal energy relies on a less dramatic kind of heat: Individual homeowners can now install heat pumps that take advantage of the 50°-60° temperature of the soil near the surface to provide heating in cold weather (and air-conditioning in the warm months). These very small-scale geothermal systems may eventually supply more useful energy than the large power plants.
Examples of geothermal in a Sentence
Susmita Baral, Travel + Leisure, 20 May 2024
There is a lot of untapped potential with geothermal
Boise's system is only used for heat because the warm water in the geothermal aquifer beneath this city of 230,000 is below the boiling point.
—Kirk Siegler, NPR, 8 May 2024
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“Geothermal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/geothermal. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
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geothermal
adjective
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