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If you pay just a little attention to what scientists say, it shouldn’t be too hard to understand how freezing conditions across North America can be linked to climate change. As polar temperatures rise faster than equatorial temperatures, jet streams that hold weather conditions in their rightful places are weakening. And that can help the frigid Arctic cyclone known as the polar vortex slip deeper into North America. Weakening jet streams linked to global warming were also connected last year to floods in Colorado and Alberta, unseasonable heat in Alaska, and unseasonable cold in Florida.
Of course, some conservatives have been putting on their dunces’ hats and desperately wielding the recent cold snap as evidence that the globe is not warming, despite all scientific evidence to the contrary. (Climate denialism is rampant among those who disregard science and prefer to guess at what makes the world work — which explains why the climate-denying prime ministers of Australia and Canada are dismantling their nations’ scientific institutions.)
Jon Stewart ridiculed the silliness earlier this week with his trademark sense of humor, and now the White House has entered the fray. Instead of using humor, President Barack Obama’s science advisor, John Holdren, used his exceptional grasp of science to coolly smack down climate deniers in a video posted on Wednesday.
“If you’ve been hearing that extreme cold spells like the one that we’re having in the United States now disprove global warming, don’t believe it,” Holdren says in the video, before launching into a succinct explanation of how uneven global temperature changes are destabilizing the polar vortex and making it “wavier.”
“The waviness means that there can be increased, larger excursions of wintertime cold air southward,” Holdren says. He adds that “increased excursions of relatively warmer” air can also move into the “far north” as the globe warms. Watch:
John Upton is a science fan and green news boffin who tweets, posts articles to Facebook, and blogs about ecology. He welcomes reader questions, tips, and incoherent rants: johnupton@gmail.com.Find this article interesting? Donate now to support our work.Read more: Climate & Energy
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Building the grid for the solar park in Scornicesti, Romania. Photo: Power Clouds
When it comes to providing energy, a Singapore-based company has its head in the clouds. And they’re hoping it will revolutionize the way energy systems are developed.
Power Clouds is building large-scale solar parks and commercial rooftop energy plants to harness power for remote regions of the world. Beginning with three solar parks in Scornicesti, Romania, the company put its first plant into operation in August, with the third plant scheduled to go into operation in December. Attilio Palumbo, project manager for Power Clouds, says they chose that region based on several factors.
“[We looked at] the country’s social and economic stability, geographical characteristics, weather conditions, the country’s economic support and the population’s energy demand,” he says. “We will soon officially announce the locations of the fourth and fifth plants that will be built.”
In addition to harnessing energy for the region, the company’s unique business model invites outside individuals to become a part of the solution. The solar panels for each project are purchased by outside companies or individuals, who buy a panel (or “cloud”) for $1,200 under a hire-purchase contract. The panel is installed in the solar park, and when the plant becomes operational, the purchaser receives a monthly check from Power Clouds, which essentially rents back the panel from the purchaser.
The agreement lasts for 20 years, and Palumbo claims that, during that time, they will receive back about 400 percent of their initial purchase price.
“The economic returns begin the moment the solar plant goes into operation,” he explains. “Over the first five years, people [recoup] the amount spent on the panel’s purchase, and continue to receive monthly returns for the next 15 years after that.”
He says the monthly revenue generated consists of a fixed fee plus a variable amount based on each plant’s actual energy production. Each solar park takes less than four months to complete, and he says panel purchasers for the inaugural solar park are already receiving financial returns.
Homepage photo credit: morgueFile/pedrojperez
earth911
Originally posted here:
Cloudsourcing: Power Clouds Takes New Approach to Solar Energy
