US renewable electricity output

Between 2005 and 2021, the name Maverick climbed from relative obscurity to the top 50 baby names in the United States, while renewable electricity output roughly quadrupled. The r is 0.9749, suggesting that each megawatt of solar power installed quietly inspired another parent to name their son after a Tom Cruise character. One hopes the Mavericks of 2021 grow up to feel the appropriate weight of responsibility. The wind turbines are counting on them.

Both trends are driven by the same cultural and political moment: the mainstreaming of a certain rugged, optimistic American individualism that characterized the 2010s. Renewable energy grew from a fringe investment to a mainstream infrastructure play, with US renewable output climbing from about 400 billion kWh in 2005 to over 900 billion kWh by 2021, driven by cost declines and policy. Simultaneously, 'frontier' and 'independent' names like Maverick, Hunter, and Ranger surged among parents signaling similar values. Both curves accelerated markedly after 2015.

Naming a child and building an energy grid are both acts of optimism about the future. That both optimisms peaked simultaneously probably says something true about the decade, even if it says nothing useful about the names or the kilowatts.