I like Renewable Gurus Better Than Social Media Gurus
"a bigger potential is offshore wind energy"
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Turning Propellers on Solar Aircraft
Solar Impulse, the solar powered aircraft whose developers hope to fly around the world, has been getting out of the hangar recently and getting the juice flowing through its electric motors. The most recent excursion last Wednesday was captured (and nicely narrated) by AVweb reader Thomas Netter, who lives about 20 minutes from Dubendorf Airfield where the huge high-aspect-ratio flying wing is being built. According to the Solar Impulse project's Web site, the excursion was aimed at testing the effect of the electric motors on the aircraft's electronics, a test the builders say went well, along with giving onlookers a pretty good look at the aircraft in operation.
via avweb.com
For those not acquainted with the project: Solar Impulse aims at flying around the world with a solar aircraft (as in, an electric motor glider that gets its power from the solar cells that cover the upper surface of the wings). I'm wishing them all the luck, it's not going to be easy to pull the feat off. As the "two" Eric involved in this NYT/IHT story I wrote mentioned to me earlier this year, a wiring so complex is tech knowledge plus a pinch of black magic.
Here's a direct link to the Youtube video of the test:
Eric Raymond is also loosely connected to another story I'm working on, related to this post and another Chinese company that made an interesting breakthrough. Check here AvWeb interviewing Mr Raymond about his successful aircraft, the Sunseeker II:
Of relevance to this post, note, at 2:25, his comment on Solar Impulse. At the question "What sort of things are you applying from your skill set to theirs?" (sic), asked in relations to his collaboration with Bertrand Piccard, head of the Solar Impulse project, he answers: "I would say a harsh dose of reality, to be honest with you...". Let me stress the fact that he is by no means being negative about their project; the solar/electric flying community is very small and, to the best of my knowledge, animated by a gentlemanly spirit of camaraderie.
Portable Solar Power Charger — Modern Solutions for Everyday Concerns
Solar Power Backpack via lazyenvironmentalist.com
Back in college, I've had one of those crazy solar-powered portable radios. It was cool when I first got it, problem was it took about 5 days of charging to get a half hour worth of play time. Needless to say, that little gadget ended up in our university's ewaste recycling program. Since then, I've steered clear off these products, but it seems portable solar chargers these days are far more advanced and reliable than my old solar radio. Here's a quick look at what's available out there by the guys at The Lazy Environmentalist.
You can leave comments below or start a discussion at Green Options - Environment.
Semiconductor Vids: magnetic fields & data, raw
:The secret lives of invisible magnetic fields are revealed as chaotic ever-changing geometries . All action takes place around NASA's Space Sciences Laboratories, UC Berkeley, to recordings of space scientists describing their discoveries:
this one i've posted in the past. it's just so cool.
Brilliant Noise by Semiconductor: Ruth Jarman and Joe Gerhardt :Brilliant Noise takes us into the data vaults of solar astronomy. After sifting through hundreds of thousands of computer files, made accessible via open access archives, Semiconductor have brought together some of the sun's finest unseen moments.:
Career Redirection to Solar
Many Americans are discovering the hard way: you have to work to get into an industry. As many older industries are drying up, Americans are looking to follow the green revolution with a green career. Unfortunately, the renewable field is very new and few have experience. In order to land a "green" job, many adults are taking solar courses.
Through taking solar courses, professionals are learning new skills and how old skills apply to the solar industry. This provides individuals with the experience, knowledge, and certifications to help move renewable energy forward.Part of the training is being funded by the federal government through the "Workforce Investment Act". This is a fund that is distributed by the states to individuals wishing to retrain to get into a new industry and revitalize the American economy.
Upon completion, professionals must create a new network to get themselves known. This requires attending local and state-wide events to meet the key player in the industry, becoming connected to local solar businesses, and creating personal marketing through either a website or getting oneself out in public.
All of this requires time and most do not have the funds to support themselves during the transition. This is why many are taking any available position. Just remember, the tempory position is only temporary.
Career Transition to Solar
Rich Hessler
Solar Training
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correcta pro GmbH: Aktiv zum ökologisch bewussten Handeln beitragen
Berlin - Seit fast 20 Jahren berät die correcta pro GmbH ihre Kunden über ökologische Investments und die Chancen staatlicher Förderprogramme. Ökologie-Experte und Rechtsassessor Oliver Schmid, einer der führenden Köpfe der correcta pro GmbH, erläutert im Interview die Kompetenzvorteile der correcta pro GmbH und die Perspektiven ökologisch orientierter Zukunftsbranchen.
Herr Schmid, am vergangenen Wochenende ist der eDay in Berlin-Tempelhof zu Ende gegangen. Was waren aus Sicht der correcta pro GmbH die Highlights?Oliver Schmid, correcta pro GmbH: Der eDay war definitiv ein Riesenerfolg für alle, die als Aussteller oder Besucher dabei sein durften - nicht...correcta pro GmbH: Aktiv zum ökologisch bewussten Handeln beitragen bei Pressehof komplett lesenvia Pressehof
Novothink - iPod Touch "Surge" Solar Charger (tags: solar, green, iPod, CommXperts)
We received our demo sample today, of the NT02 iPod Touch Solar Charger called the Surge, by Novothink. We are currently in testing phase, but the unit is quickly charging our iPod Touch unit with ease. We have officially signed our distributor agreement with Novothink, and will begin carrying the iPod Touch Solar Chargers within the next few weeks.
Novothink is currently in production of these units, and will launch a similar iPhone Solar Charger in December of this year. We will have our site updated with all relevant models and colors within the next few days. CommXperts www.commxperts.com/shop will also be launching www.iphonesolarcharger.com in the next few weeks with Pre-Order instructions for the iPhone unit and shipping for the December holidays.
Please check back as we continue to test our iPod Touch Solar unit, and view our YouTube channel next week for the sneak peek videos of the Novothink units.
Here comes the sun....charge away!
The future of solar power?
This graph is via Cool Infographics who cites a Fast Company article from December 2008:
At the left-hand, present-tense end of the scale, solar power is a microscopic pencil line of gold against the thick, dark bands of oil and natural gas and coal, an accurate representation of the 0.04% of the world's electricity produced by solar power as of 2006. The band grows slowly thicker for 20 years or so, and then around 2040 a dramatic inversion occurs. The mountain-peak lines indicating the various fossil fuels all fall steeply away, leaving a widening maw of golden light as solar power expands to fill the space. By 2060, solar power is the largest single band, and by 2100 it is by far the majority share.
...
"The hypothesis of SunPower," Werner tells me, his argument bottom-line blunt, "was take a high-technology, high-efficiency solar cell and mass-produce it at low cost. And it worked." He slides a small pane of glass out of a file folder. It's about the size of a household floor tile and inlaid with a blue-black hexagonal pattern. This is SunPower's PV cell, which, at 22% efficiency, holds the world record for a commercial product. (The industry average is about 16%.) He holds it up for my inspection, and I notice the hexagons are identical to the ones on the tabletop between us, which turns out to be a large SunPower panel mounted on four legs. "As you create this market for solar," Werner says, "you create the opportunity to scale. And so what happens is, you innovate your way down the cost curve."
The YHA in Moira
last night we went for a meeting with richard beldon, a nice chap who runs a local site called http://www.letsgolocal.co.uk - a very active site in terms of members and growing all the time. we met to discuss (with emma also) about how his 600 local businesses on the site could benefit by attending the day and indeed the other events spread out over the coming year at conkertu.
i realised however sometimes being passionate about seeing the big picture in your head can come across as a really confusing geeky perspective when your talking geotagging, socialmedia and fibre. i have a mission on my hands to almost dumb myself down instead of being on the cutting edge. i forget sometimes this stuff is quite a radical approach from the ways things have always been done in some ways. want to break the idea that people have no time to engage in this. they do, if they use the right tools for the job it can become so quick you'll spend more time checking that you actually did it or not! :)
