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Designing solar arrays for a climate benefit

A study to determine whether energy production can simultaneously be used to positively affect regional climates, including modifying rainfall patterns, has begun in CSIRO?s weather and energy research unit.

Nov 6th, 2012

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Intersolar Award 2012 for solar projects in India

The Intersolar AWARD for the category Solar Projects in India was presented for the first time at Intersolar India, India's largest exhibition and conference for the solar industry. The international solar industry prize pays tribute to companies for particularly outstanding solar projects.

Nov 6th, 2012

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High-tech tools tackle wind farm performance

Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are learning how to better understand these issues and are working toward effective solutions for the wind industry. Their goal is to maximize turbine performance and minimize structural loads, which will ultimately result in lower-cost wind energy. Toward that goal, NREL researchers are leveraging the lab's supercomputing resources and have developed high-tech modeling and simulation capabilities.

Nov 6th, 2012

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The limitations of climate models

How accurate is the latest generation of climate models? Climate physicist Reto Knutti from ETH Zurich has compared them with old models and draws a differentiated conclusion: while climate modelling has made substantial progress in recent years, we also need to be aware of its limitations.

Nov 5th, 2012

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Carbon buried in the soil rises again

A research team that includes a University of California, Davis, plant scientist has identified a source of carbon emissions that could play a role in understanding past and future global change.

Nov 5th, 2012

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From rocket fuel to clean cars

Austrian manufacturer MagnaSteyr has adapted technology developed for the Ariane rocket to build clean-burning cars that can use hydrogen instead of petrol for fuel.

Nov 2nd, 2012

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Bulletin: German nuclear exit delivers economic, environmental benefits

A special issue of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, published by SAGE, ?The German Nuclear Exit,? shows that the nuclear shutdown and an accompanying move toward renewable energy are already yielding measurable economic and environmental benefits, with one top expert calling the German phase-out a probable game-changer for the nuclear industry worldwide.

Nov 1st, 2012

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Wind energy yields major environmental and public health benefits for Colorado

Wind energy in Colorado each year saves a billion gallons of water while avoiding emissions of air pollutants equivalent to that produced by half a million cars. Between 2000 and 2011, production of electricity from wind energy in Colorado grew from zero to 4.7 million megawatt-hours (MWh), and is now producing nearly 10 percent of the state's electricity.

Nov 1st, 2012

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The energy of stunt kites

It may seem as though the German plains are all but tapped out when it comes to wind energy production. To refute this theory researchers are sending stunt kites into the skies to harness the wind and convert the kinetic energy generated into electricity.

Oct 31st, 2012

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New study to examine ecological tipping points in hopes of preventing them

A new project of scientists at UCSB's National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) and partners aims to synthesize existing research on tipping points in marine ecosystems and conduct case studies to devise a set of early warning indicators and management tools that may help to predict, even prevent, threatened systems from falling off the precipice.

Oct 30th, 2012

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