Global Solar Droughts Due To Supply‐Demand Imbalance Exacerbated by Anthropogenic Climate Change

Abstract Solar power will become the largest renewable energy source, contributing to global carbon neutrality. In addition to the well‐recognized temporal intermittency of solar energy supply, the local energy demand to cope with extreme weathers can further stress the energy grid; both the supply and demand can be greatly influenced by future climate change. Here, we redefine solar drought events by considering supply demand imbalance in solar power. Observation and multi‐model simulations reveal an anthropogenic exacerbation of global solar drought frequency in the past three decades. Moreover, compared to the pathway SSP2‐4.5, the carbon neutrality pathway SSP1‐2.6 can mitigate the increasing frequency and severity of solar droughts by 60% and 63% in the 2090s, respectively. Our study suggests a co‐benefit of solar energy stability and security toward carbon neutrality, especially in developing nations where the local supply demand imbalance is a major issue.