On The Fly

In this episode – Powering the West . . . Welcome back to On the Fly, your podcast for curious minds exploring the unexpected. Today, we're soaring across the Pacific Northwest down to sunny California, tracing the fascinating history of the Pacific Northwest–Pacific Southwest Intertie. Imagine a massive power line stretching over 800 miles, carrying electricity from the mighty Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest to the sun-drenched valleys of California. This is the Pacific Northwest–Pacific Southwest Intertie (Intertie) , a marvel of engineering that revolutionized power transmission in the Western United States. Professor Carl Magnusson from the University of Washington had a vision as early as 1919 to create a high-voltage network that would connect the Pacific Northwest, rich in hydroelectricity, with the energy demands of the Southwest. This vision gained momentum during the droughts in California during the 1940s, highlighting the need for a reliable power source beyond ...