Mr. Gore admitted his plan would, at least initially, drive energy prices higher. But he proposed a payroll tax cut to offset higher prices for fuel and electricity.

He said he envisioned nuclear power retaining its current share of domestic electricity generation, about 20 percent. Coal, which now produces about half of American electricity, would dwindle, while renewable sources, now producing less than 3 percent of the nation’s electricity, would rapidly grow. (Natural gas and hydroelectric dams provide most of the remainder of the nation’s electricity, relatively little of which comes from burning oil.)

Mr. Gore, who was awarded the Nobel Prize last October, is the most vocal in a growing chorus calling for a green energy revolution. The Texas oilman Boone Pickens has proposed converting a large portion of the American transportation fleet to run on compressed natural gas while spending billions on new wind farms to produce electricity. Even those who share Mr. Gore’s ideals expressed skepticism that his goal could be achieved in 10 years.

“Mr. Gore is continuing his talent of identifying the key challenges, emphasizing urgency and translating it to a broad audience. That’s terrific,” said Ernest J. Moniz, director of the energy initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a former under secretary at the Department of Energy in the Clinton administration. “Everyone agrees that the solution to the climate challenge is decarbonization and the first place to go is the electricity sector. Can we get there that fast? Obviously it’s very, very tough.”

Last winter, the House failed to enact legislation to require utilities to produce 15 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Last month, supporters could not even get a Senate vote on a climate change plan that would cut greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 70 percent by 2050. Mr. Gore was undeterred.

“To those who say 10 years is not enough time, I respectfully ask them to consider seriously what the world’s scientists are telling us about the risks we face if we don’t act in less than 10 years,” he said.

He noted that the United States uses only a tiny fraction of the wind, solar and geothermal power available. He said entrepreneurs were investing billions of dollars in new technology and rapidly bringing down the cost of all alternative energy sources.