Solar Powered Flight

Posted on July 12, 2010
Filed Under SOLAR, TECHNOLOGY, TRANSPORTATION | Leave a Comment

By Erin Molon

Switzerland Solar AdventureFly by the light of the sun! Seriously.

According to a Yahoo News Report, an experimental solar powered plane took flight Wednesday out of Geneva, Switzerland. Using 12,000 solar cells and a wing span of 262.5 feet, engineers hope that the plane can gain enough energy from the sun to power the plane overnight. The flight took off in clear skies around 7 am and is flying over the Jura Mountains, just West of the Swiss Alps.

The real question will be answered at nightfall, as the pilot and ground crew will decided whether or not the plane has enough solar battery power to be flown through the night.

Engineers hope the plane does complete a flight through the night, which would be a major step towards completing an entire lap around the world in a solar plane.

The pilot, Andre Borschberg, settled to a cruise at approximately 19,860 feet in the air and managed to avoid the mountains’ low-level turbulence and thermal winds. He will reach 27,900 feet by Wednesday evening and, if he decides to fly through the night, will descend to 4,920 feet for the duration of the flight.

The plane’s path consists of loops around Payerne airport within gliding range in case of the need for an emergency landing. Borschberg is flying solo and is wearing a parachute just in case.

This flight is part of a group of tests they have been doing which also included a “flea hop” and an extended flight. According to an ABC news report, the main purpose of the project is to test and promote new energy efficient technologies.

Photo: Yahoo

Green Your Ride: Looks like a Ferrari — with Zero Emissions

Posted on July 6, 2010
Filed Under Electric Vehicles, Green Business, Green Your Ride, TECHNOLOGY | Leave a Comment

By Brandon Rose

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Tesla Motors Inc. designs, develops, manufactures and sells high-performance, fully electric vehicles and advanced electric vehicle power train components. In addition to designing and manufacturing zero emission vehicles, Tesla sells and services them through its own sales and service network. Tesla has delivered over 1,000 sporty-looking Tesla Roadsters to customers in 22 countries.

The California based company went public this week, selling over 13 million shares of common stock priced at $17 per share. This is the first U.S. auto company initial public offering in 54 years. The stock rose 40% on its IPO debut, leaving green investors very impressed (it peaked at $25).

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Here’s what all the speculation is about. Tesla is already taking reservations for their mass-produced sleek, electric, model S sedan, which these investors believe will be a huge hit when it comes the market in 2012. The price is estimated to be around the $50,000 range (not including the $7,500 U.S. federal tax credit). The electric sedan has a 300 mile range with a 45 minute QuickCharge (you can charge from any outlet). It’s 2X as efficient as hybrids and will go from 0-60 mph in 5.6 seconds. The high performance sedan seats 7, making it a very desirable car for families. Pretty innovative, if you ask me.

Stay tuned for updates on the cutting-edge automaker Tesla.

For leasing information: Click Here

For more information on Green Investments: Investopedia

Innovative Charger for Innovative Phone

Posted on July 2, 2010
Filed Under SOLAR, TECHNOLOGY | Leave a Comment

By Erin Molon

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Have you recently stood in line to be one of the first 600,000 people to get their hands on the iPhone’s newest edition? Well, if you are one of the lucky ones to have an iPhone on order, you may be thinking about accessories that can accompany your purchase.

Well, have I got the accessory for you! A portable, solar powered battery charger. This tiny charger can store up energy for your phone and charge your whole battery! You can leave it on your dashboard to soak up some rays or on a table while outdoor dining or… basically anywhere. It is very portable so if the time comes and you’re almost out of battery, grab it out of your pocket and keep your phone charged.

I can picture this handy little tool being particularly helpful on a roadtrip or a camping trip where outlets aren’t readily available. I can also see this being useful when you reallllly need to make a phone call but then your battery is about to die and you are so mad because it’s really important… you get the picture.

This item is a green must-have and at only $17.19 from Senyx on Amazon, you can’t go wrong. iPhones are synonymous with innovation and if only for this reason alone, it would be just plain wrong to charge it the old-fashioned way.

A Green Idea: Digital Textbooks

Posted on June 30, 2010
Filed Under Carbon Footprints, TECHNOLOGY | Leave a Comment

By Erin Molon

the-kno

(Credit: Kno)

Any of us who are or have recently been a college student are all too aware of the annoyance of a backpack full of books and a laptop. They are heavy, bulky, and just plain hard to manage. A company called Kno also seems to be very in tune with this problem because they are now offering an intriguing alternative called The Kno.

This 5.5 lb, two touchscreen paneled “textbook” serves as textbooks, notebooks, and even a laptop all in one! Their website claims that it can do everything you might need your textbook for and then some. You can fold the two panels to make it even more compact, you can highlight, take notes, and even just hold your place with your finger. The Kno has video capability, a stylus for all your writing needs, and of course has WiFi and Bluetooth capabilities. Most importantly, it has the battery life of a full 6-8 hour day on campus!

This product seems to be a cross between the iPad and a Kindle and from the looks of it, has some of the best qualities of both. As campuses become more and more digital, this is the wave of the future. This device is also an excellent way to reduce your carbon footprint because when replacing textbooks, it uses a significantly less amount of paper.

My concerns? The eyes of America. It can’t be good for the eyes to stare at a computer screen all day. Unfortunately, most people already spend countless hours a day staring at a screen (including myself as I write this blog) so I can’t be sure that this computer textbook will impact anyone’s screen time any more or less. It will however put fear into university textbook stores everywhere!

Insight from the Insight

Posted on June 28, 2010
Filed Under Carbon Footprints, TECHNOLOGY | Leave a Comment

By Erin Molon

insight

If your house is like my house, it seems like everything needs to be plugged in! While it is advised that you unplug electronics when you are not using them, that rule is easy to overlook. But what if you could see how much it was costing you to keep the appliance plugged in?

Belkin has created such a visual aid in its Conserve Insight, a seemingly easy to use energy monitoring system. This gadget gets plugged into the socket first and has a socket on its face where you can then plug the device. The connected display gives you the option to see what the environmental impact is in term of CO2 each year or month from the plugged in device, how many watts of electricity it uses, and how much money it is costing you to run it — the last of which is my personal favorite.

While the device is not released yet, you can pre-order it on Belkin’s website. It is reasonably priced at $29.99 so it’s an investment everyone can make.

I see this product as a great way to educate yourself on how much energy you are truly using. While you may know that you are leaving plenty of things plugged in, when you can’t see its cost to the environment and to you it’s hard to really put the waste into perspective. Plus, you know what they say; out of sight, out of mind.

Now I am just left to wonder: How much electricity does the Conserve Insight use?

British Musician Walking the Walk

Posted on June 24, 2010
Filed Under Green Celebs, Music, TECHNOLOGY | 1 Comment

By Charlie Fisher

The name KT Tunstall may not be as recognizable in the United States as it is in Great Britain, but her single “Suddenly I See” has been a huge hit all over the world. The Scottish-born Tunstall was raised in a log cabin in the Scottish countryside, and she attributes her upbringing to the strong consciousness she has of her environmental impact.

Tunstall doesn’t want to be another one of the many prominent figures just preaching the message on sustainability, so she is taking a different approach. In 2007, she hired an advisor to help her completely re-do her London flat in order to make it energy efficient and nearly carbon neutral. Her newly renovated flat features many green accessories, such as a gas saver that is attached to her combination boiler. This captures the heat produced by the boiler and uses it to pre-heat the cold water supply, cutting her yearly hot-water bill in half.

Tunstall hired a nearby construction company for the labor and used materials from local areas whenever possible. The unit is outfitted with low-flow water amenities and was painted entirely with solvent-free paints and pigments. To keep warm in the winter and cool in the summer, the walls are insulated with British wool. KT also made sure to have a humongous 7′ by 5′ fully-opening window installed so she can utilize all available natural light before turning on her CFLs at night. To top it off, almost all of the energy used in the flat is produced from 11 solar panels mounted on the roof (this is still London we’re talking about).

There are plenty of celebrities out there preaching to the public about the importance of environmental awareness, but maybe what we need is more people like Tunstall, who is walking the walk.

Olympic Committees Going For the Green

Posted on June 22, 2010
Filed Under Green Sports, TECHNOLOGY | Leave a Comment

By Charlie Fisher

Every four years the Olympic Games are more widely viewed — and scrutinized — than any other sporting event in the world. It is an enormous honor to be chosen as an Olympic host country, and it is a position that is aggressively sought after years before the event takes place. The criteria to be selected as a host country has never been perfectly clear, but recently the Olympic Committee has been obviously asserting the message that greener is better.

southeast-false-creek1The 2010 Winter Olympic Games were held in Vancouver, British Columbia, which has become one of the most sustainable cities in North America. It took roughly seven years for all of the Olympic venue construction to be completed and the events organized. Over that SEVEN year time period in Vancouver, significantly less greenhouse gases were emitted than in the few weeks that were the 2002 Salt Lake City Games and the 2006 Turin Games combined. Prior to the Games, the Vancouver committee built two separate Olympic Villages. The village located in the South East False Creek area is made up of 16 buildings and every one was built to meet LEED Gold standards.

All of the buildings rooftops are equipped with solar panels as well as numerous types of vegetation and are designed to collect the frequently falling rainwater for irrigation. Hydropower is relied upon to provide 90% of the city’s electricity, and spectators can travel to all of the events using the local transit system, comprised of 20 hydrogen-powered buses. The venue that was built to hold all of the speed skating events, The Richmond Oval, was constructed entirely from trees that had been destroyed by a bug infestation.

Overall, Vancouver has done their part in starting an Olympic movement that emphasizes sustainability and minimizing our impact on the environment and atmosphere. Hopefully this is just the beginning of a movement that will continue to spread and expand exponentially. So if your home country is aiming to host the prestigious Olympic Games, it’s time to go for the green!

Bill Gates Helps America Plan for a Sustainable Future

Posted on June 18, 2010
Filed Under Carbon Footprints, Green Business, Green Celebs, TECHNOLOGY, TRANSPORTATION | Leave a Comment

By Brandon Rose

Now more than ever, America wants affordable clean energy. The American Energy Innovation Council plans on giving Americans what they ask for.

To do this, they have the some of the best entrepreneurs and most innovative thinkers, such as Bill Gates, working on this problem. But first, they need help from the government. They are asking the government to triple the national energy research budget. Today, the budget is under $5 billion. They say this budget increase is needed to promote a new economy powered by green jobs, to combat climate change, and to end our dependence on foreign oil:

As business leaders, we feel that America’s current energy system is deficient in ways that cause serious harm to our economy, our national security, and our environment. To correct these deficiencies, we must make a serious commitment to modernizing our energy system with cleaner, more efficient technologies.

Such a commitment should include both robust, public investments in innovative energy technologies as well as policy reforms to deploy these technologies on a large scale. By tapping America’s entrepreneurial spirit and longstanding leadership in technology innovation, we can set a course for a prosperous, sustainable economy-and take control of our energy future.

Conversely, if we continue with the energy status quo, we will expose ourselves to risks that pose significant threats to our way of life.

The Council issued five specific recommendations:

  1. Create an independent national energy strategy board.
  2. Invest $16 billion per year in clean energy innovation.
  3. Create Centers of Excellence with strong domain expertise.
  4. Fund ARPA-E at $1 billion per year.
  5. Establish and fund a New Energy Challenge Program to build large-scale pilot projects

What do you think? Are these good ways to meet America’s clean energy goals? Let us know what you think in the comments.

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