Definition of GEOTHERMAL

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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

Recent Examples on the Web

And just like fracking, geothermal injection plants can trigger earthquakes. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "One of the Worst Earthquakes in Korea's History Was Caused by Humans," 21 Mar. 2019 The geothermal waves set off by the Sun's storm will give the Northern US a rare chance to see the stunning light show usually reserved for our polar neighbors. — Sara Rodrigues, House Beautiful, "You Can See The Northern Lights Across The US This Weekend," 22 Mar. 2019 The Pohang plant is being permanently shut down, but plenty of other geothermal facilities remain operational around the world. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "One of the Worst Earthquakes in Korea's History Was Caused by Humans," 21 Mar. 2019 Calpine generates electricity from natural gas and geothermal resources. — Micah Maidenberg, WSJ, "PG&E Faces Lawsuit Over 2013 California Wildfire," 2 Jan. 2019 In particular, Nevada has rich geothermal resources. — Megan Geuss, Ars Technica, "States will vote on these energy and environment issues in midterm elections," 4 Nov. 2018 The average temperature of the water in a Yellowstone hot spring is 143 degrees, according to the National Park Service, but higher temperatures of geothermal activity have been recorded, according to the Chronicle. — Amy Lieu, Fox News, "Viral video shows man trying to bathe feet in Yellowstone's thermal hot springs: report," 25 Sep. 2018 To that end, the state's climate task force released a draft in April that included a proposal for Alaska to get 50 percent of its electricity from renewable sources like solar, wind, hydropower, and geothermal by 2025, up from 33 percent in 2016. — Author: Brad Plumer, Anchorage Daily News, "‘Impossible to ignore’: Why Alaska is crafting a plan to fight climate change," 16 May 2018 To that end, the state’s climate task force released a draft in April that included a proposal for Alaska to get 50 percent of its electricity from renewable sources like solar, wind, hydropower and geothermal by 2025, up from 33 percent in 2016. — New York Times, "‘Impossible to Ignore’: Why Alaska Is Crafting a Plan to Fight Climate Change," 15 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'geothermal.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.