What happens when all solar panels go on vacation at the same time? That took place on Aug. 21, when a total solar eclipse darkened the skies from Oregon to South Carolina. Before the eclipse "solar power was projected to decrease by 4,000–6,000 MW at 70 MW/minute, and then ramp up by 90 MW/minute as the shadow passed"
Before we fast-forward to the present, this was a popular question after the massive power failure of 1965 that put parts of the US and Canada in the dark.
So now the present: What happens when all solar panels go on vacation at the same time? That took place on Aug. 21, when a total solar eclipse darkened the skies from Oregon to South Carolina. Before the eclipse "solar power was projected to decrease by 4,000–6,000 MW at 70 MW/minute, and then ramp up by 90 MW/minute as the shadow passed", according to Wikipedia. "Grid operators in California reported having lost 3,000–3,500 megawatts of utility-scale solar power, which was reliably made up for by hydropower and gas and as expected, mimicking the usual duck curve." In other words: nothing dramatic happened. Like with the millennium bug (Y2K) adequate measures were taken that prevented major upheavals.
More information about the duck curve and managing a 'green grid' can be found here.
