Google Throws $10 Million At Geothermal

Google.org, the public-spirited division of Google.com, charged with addressing "climate change, poverty and emerging disease," is using the backdrop of the National Clean Energy Summit here in Las Vegas to announce a new round of clean energy financing.

In a nutshell, the company is investing an arguably modest sum -- a little over $10 million -- in the development of Enhanced Geothermal Systems, or EGS. The technology differs from "traditional" geothermal in that rather than exploiting existing wells of earthbound steam and hot water, EGS drills deep -- miles down -- to access layers of heated granite that exist underfoot everywhere on the planet. Water can be circulated downward for heating, and then upward to drive turbines and generate electricity.

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More developments from the National Clean Energy Summit:

::Bill Clinton Gets Wonky, Makes 10 Energy Recommendations