December 29th, 2008 admin
The night skies are not as dark as you think. Light pollution covers most of the populated areas of the planet, and then some. Have you ever wondered why you can’t see the Big Dipper? It’s basically poor lighting design. Most of the beneficial illumination that we need to navigate around after sunset, shoots skyward and obscures the starry night. If that wasn’t bad enough, according to National Geographic Magazine, “light is a powerful biological force, (and) on many species it acts as a magnet.” This means not only does light pollution affect the aesthetic appeal of our nighttime skies, but many migrating birds traveling at night collide into brightly lit buildings. They are also drawn by the lighthouse effect of off-shore drilling platforms, where large flocks circle the structures until they drop into the sea from exhaustion. Humanity has lit up the night as if the bogeyman was about to invade our homes during our sleep. This form of pollution is the easiest to pull the plug on, if not for the romantic starry nights, but for our fine feathered friends in our trust.
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December 20th, 2008 admin
We all know the Earth’s climate is not what Ozzie and Harriet once counted on every season. For the most part the mercury has been traveling towards the higher end of the thermometer. At least that’s what 2008 Nobel Peace Prize winner Al Gore so graphically displayed in his documentary An Inconvenient Truth, also collaborated by a world wide legion of climatologist and environmental gurus, who appear to be right, but also lets take into account weird weather patterns that may not be a direct result of humanities tampering with the atmosphere. According to NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, the 2008 meteorological year places the US in a relatively cool place on the planet while the rest of the world sweats bullets, (a steady incremental rise in planetary temperatures since 1998). This climate chaos is partially blamed on the atmospheric condition of La Nina, being the cool phase of the planet bucking against the warmer variations of the oceans and rest of the planet. That might explain weather anomalies like snowy mountain peaks in the lower altitudes around posh Palm Springs, California, and snow ball fights on the Las Vegas strip. Enjoy the cool respite, La Nina will be leaving soon.
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December 17th, 2008 admin
Solar and wind generated electrons are the media darlings sharing the center stage of the current renewable energy revolution currently unfolding before us. Geothermal energy is the lesser known of the green applications getting ready to be tapped for the so-called green grid. The Leathers Geothermal Power Plant in California is staking its share in the new economy by pressurizing the steamy, volcanic stew from hundreds of miles below the surface to turn turbines and thus producing clean power. Other potential areas for geothermal-electric generation is the northern “Ring of Fire” a large circumference of volcanism in the Pacific, like Mount Spur near Anchorage, Alaska, a sure bet to produce large amounts of inexhaustible power required to satisfy Sarah Palin’s dry cleaning needs.
Posted in Green Solutions, clean skies | 1 Comment »
December 8th, 2008 admin
Last time I check my historical facts, the term Czar set fear in the hearts of the working classes and country folk of what was then the reign of Czar Nicholas II of Imperial Russia. Here we are today almost one hundred years from those despotic days and still using the infamous title of Czar. This time in a so-called modern capitalistic society where the democratically elected governing body is bailing out the Big Three auto companies with tax payers hard earned cash, but wait. Conditions are being placed for those rogue manufactures who several years ago fought against CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy), standards for passenger cars and light trucks. The electrification of Detroit, meaning the implementation of hybrid power trains to elevate miles per gallon is one of the main conditions set by the Obama government. With that said, development of state-of-the-art lithium ion battery packs to sustain a hybrid vehicle for over 30 miles without having to kick-in it’s fossil fuel burning engine and also to possibly build an electric car with that technology, similar to the all electric marvel the General Motors EV-1. Hopefully history won’t repeat itself and the angry, jobless, Bolshevik hordes won’t take down the reigning Czar and royal family.
Posted in Green Solutions, hybrid vehicles | 1 Comment »
December 3rd, 2008 admin
They say the state of New Mexico has one of the most beautiful sunsets to behold. I’ve seen a few of the awe inspiring evenings myself. Lately though, many sunsets have a reminiscent look of the land of enchantment. Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, (NOAA), have also noticed and commented about all the orange, unusually reddish sunsets around metropolitan areas and rural undisturbed areas near contaminated air corridors, much like Joshua Tree National Park. With all the carbon dioxide and other gaseous swill floating about the globe you would think a carbon sleuth would be keeping an eye and nose on all that. There is, the recent carbon dioxide-measuring observatory at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, aptly named the NOAA Mauna Loa Observatory. This may seem like another federal, amorphous, wind-bag attempt to put a band aid on the Global Climate Change challenge, but not only does the observatory monitor the amount and passage of airborne pollutants, but also where the insidious gases are “sunk” or naturally absorbed by crops, forests and bodies of water. Here’s a toast to the carbon cocktail chasers.
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