Why did Spain and Portugal go dark?

Science Weekly

The Guardian

Science

4.2 • 938 Ratings

🗓️ 1 May 2025

⏱️ 20 minutes

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Summary

Authorities are still trying to understand what triggered the massive power outage that left the majority of the Iberian Peninsula without electricity on Monday. To understand what might have been at play, and whether there’s any truth to claims that renewable energy sources were to blame, Ian Sample hears from Guardian energy correspondent Jillian Ambrose. And Guardian European community affairs correspondent Ashifa Kassam explains what it was like to experience the blackout and how people reacted. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

Transcript

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0:00.0	This is The Guardian.
0:08.6	Science Weekly is supported by Worldwide Cancer Research.
0:13.4	Worldwide Cancer Research is the charity that starts new cancer cures,
0:18.0	so that in the future, we'll reach a day when no life is cut short
0:22.6	by cancer.
0:23.6	But we can't cure what we don't understand.
0:26.6	So worldwide cancer research encourages scientists to ask big questions, like,
0:32.6	why does the heart not get cancer?
0:34.6	Can AI help us find new cancer treatments? Could skin cancer be treated
0:39.9	with a vaccine? Cure starters like you are searching for the answers to cancer. Search Cure
0:46.3	Starter to find out more. Science Weekly is supported by Hive.
0:57.3	You've probably already heard of Hive and there's smart thermostats
1:01.0	that allow you to control your home heating from anywhere.
1:04.8	But Hive is evolving, giving you the power to live greener and lower your bills
1:10.5	by taking control of your home energy with a range of ecotech products.
1:15.9	Heat pumps that pull heat from thin air to warm your home more efficiently.
1:21.8	Solar panels that allow you to sell energy back to the grid and EV charges that charge your car at a cheaper rate while
1:31.3	you sleep. It's all connected by the Hive app, giving you total control so you can track your energy
1:38.1	all at the touch of a button. Hive. Know your power. Visit Hivehome.com. T's and C's apply.
1:50.3	So this all started on Monday.
1:59.3	I'd say around 12.30 or so I was working at my desk, and all of a sudden my computer monitor just switched off.
2:08.5	Ashifa Kasam is the Guardian's European Community Affairs correspondent, based in Madrid.
	...

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