Opinion:
¶ “Interview: Behind the Blades – How Cris Hein Helps Bats And Wind Turbines Share the Sky” • Like most everyone, Cris Hein once thought all bats were vampire bats. That was 25 years ago, before NREL’s lead environmental scientist began researching the world’s only flying mammal. We interviewed Hein and learned why to appreciate bats. [CleanTechnica]
Cris Hein (Photo by Cris Hein, graphic by John Frenzl, NREL)
Science and Technology:
¶ “The National Virtual Climate Laboratory is Your Guide to Climate Science” • Thunderstorms in the American Midwest. Tiny particles in the cloud cover of the Amazon rainforest. Heat waves in Baltimore. The places are very different, but you can also find information about all of them on the National Virtual Climate Laboratory. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Controversial Methods To Cool The Earth By Reflecting Sunlight Gain Traction As Global Temperatures Rise” • As the impacts of climate change intensify and become more severe, relatively untouched ideas are gaining momentum as potential short-term solutions to lower Earth’s temperature. One of them is solar geoengineering. [ABC News]
Ship tracks (MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC)
¶ “World’s First Molten Salt Energy Storage Facility Launched In Denmark” • Danish company Hyme Energy has launched the world’s first energy storage project using molten hydroxide salt to store green energy. The project is called Molten Salt Storage, MOSS, and the energy storage facility opened in the city of Esbjerg, Denmark. [Interesting Engineering]
¶ “Wind Repowering: Putting Old Wind Turbines Back Into Service” • Wind repowering aims to revamp old turbines with more efficient components, or put in completely new, state-of-the-art turbines. These new components and units can reduce noise, more efficiently power a turbine, and a deliver a higher overall energy output. [Emagazine.com]
Wind turbines (US DOE image)
World:
¶ “Juniper-Tata Power sign Maharashtra Project PPA” • Juniper Green Energy and Tata Power have signed a Power Purchase Agreement for an 85-MW hybrid renewable energy project in Maharashtra, India. The project integrates solar and wind energy sources, leveraging their complementary nature to enhance their generating efficiency. [Construction World]
¶ “Tripling Renewables: European G7 Leaders Need To Turn Words Into Action” • The COP28 goal means increasing global renewables capacity from under 4 TW at the end of 2022 to 11 TW by the end of 2030. Ember’s analysis shows that collectively G7 countries are only targeting a doubling of renewables by 2030. They need to triple it. [Euractiv]
Renewable energy (Karsten Würth, Unsplash)
¶ “Green Hydrogen Plant Opens At Reichenau Hydropower Station” • Renewable energy producer Axpo and electric utility Rhiienergie opened a green hydrogen plant in Switzerland. The 2.5-MW facility, said to be the country’s largest, is next to the Reichenau hydropower plant. It can produce 350 tonnes of green hydrogen per year. [Power Engineering International]
¶ “Exagen 20-MW Energy Storage Facility Gets Green Light” • Tewkesbury Borough Council granted planning permission for Exagen to build a 20-MW, 40-MWh battery facility within the Cheltenham and Gloucester Green Belt. The site is screened by existing vegetation, and the battery storage facility’s units will green to reduce visual impact. [Solar Power Portal]
Computer generated image of facility (Exagen image)
¶ “Climate Action ‘Cannot Trample Over The Poor.’ Guterres Launches Initiative To Protect Key Minerals For Clean Energy Transition” • The UN Secretary-General launched an initiative to ensure fairness, sustainability, and respect for human rights in the entire process of sourcing and using critical minerals needed for the clean energy transition. [UN News]
¶ “Russian Atomic Agency Faces Accusations Of Covering Up Tobol River Radioactive Pollution” • On April 26, Russia marked the 38th anniversary of the Chernobyl Disaster as its atomic agency Rosatom faces accusations of covering up yet another nuclear incident involving the flooding of its uranium mills in Siberia. [POLYGRAPH.info]
Chernobyl amusement park (Dasha Urvachova, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “Ribbon Cut At Arizona Solar Giant” • Developer Longroad has cut the ribbon at its giant Longroad Sun Streams Complex in Maricopa County, Arizona. The development is comprised of three projects totaling 665 MW (AC) of solar and 515 MW, 2,060 MWh of storage, but when complete, the site will be somewhat largers than those figures indicate. [reNews]
¶ “Offshore Wind Industry Saved By Lighter Floating Platforms” • Ocergy is new to the CleanTechnica radar, so we have some catching up to do. The San Francisco startup launched in 2019 as a bi-national project with a office in France, aiming to bring familiar cost-cutting industrial practices to the emerging field of floating wind. [CleanTechnica]
Making floating wind platforms (Courtesy of Ocergy)
¶ “The Power Of Us: As EV Demand Slows, A New Alternative Fuel Garners Attention” • While EVs’ share of the automotive market is still growing, the rate at which Americans are buying new EVs appears to be slowing. The eFuel Alliance is a collective of about 180 companies aimed at advocating for liquid fuel that is developed in a carbon-neutral way. [ABC News]
¶ “New Department Of The Interior Rules Update Onshore Oil & Gas Leasing And Other Regulations” • The Interior Department is stepping up regulations to protect federal lands from the havoc of fossil fuel development and disregard for endangered wildlife. It has announced a final rule to revise the BLM’s regulations for oil and gas leasing. [CleanTechnica]
Have an enchantingly relaxing day.
geoharvey 
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