Nuclear power appears to be a powerful way to make steam that spins a turbine. Same with geothermal, wind, & hydro. Maybe not solar? Isn’t energy lost in the multiple energy conversions (heat, water state, kinetic)? Is it theoretically possible to have a power source that more directly moves electrons through a circuit? If solar is the only one that can, it’s limited in efficiency and where it can be used. What about power generation undersea or on Ganymede or something?
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At the end of the day you’re taking mechanical energy and converting it to electrical. That’s what the generator does and that’s driven by a turbine. Even some types of solar are turbine driven (e.g. molten salt, any non PV source)
IIRC, those large generators are very optimized for reducing lost mechanical energy. I toured the Fermi power plant outside of Detroit when I was in college. We were standing next to one of the ginormous generators (like the size of a couple of buses) and the guy said they’re so finely balanced etc. that you can turn it by hand.
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