hydropower

Also known as water power, hydraulic energy

thumb|upright=1.3|The Three Gorges Dam in China; the hydroelectric dam is the world's largest power station by [[installed capacity.]]

AI overview

Hydropower is electricity generated by flowing water, typically captured at large dams like China's Three Gorges Dam, which is the world's biggest power station by capacity. It matters because it provides a major source of renewable energy for electricity generation around the world.

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Image: The Dam (2890371280).jpg

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Commons category: Hydropower
P8168: Alexander Nikolayevich Samokhvalov

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~32 min read

Article

21 sections

Contents

Calculating the amount of available power
Disadvantages and limitations
Applications
Mechanical power
Watermills
Rail transport
Compressed air
Electricity
Rain power
History
Ancient history
19th century
20th century
United States
Africa
Europe
See also
Notes
References
Sources
External links

thumb|upright=1.3|The Three Gorges Dam in China; the hydroelectric dam is the world's largest power station by [[installed capacity.]]

Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a water source to produce power. Hydropower is a method of sustainable energy production. Hydropower is now used principally for hydroelectric power generation, and is also applied as one half of an energy storage system known as pumped-storage hydroelectricity.