I’ve been hearing/reading way too much talks about the possibility of wars among nations recently….over oil reserves…over the fear of nuclear weapons….
I believe many of you care and love our planet earth just as much as I do. I want to be able to enjoy watching my beautiful Florida sunsets and be able to visit Aurora Borealis one day….I haven’t written my best selling book yet and am not even half way through with my bucket list….
As I watched the following video clip of The Aurora,
I was moved/inspired to ask the question, “If the issue lies in what kind of nuclear technology Iran is really developing, why don’t we (nations on both sides: U.S.A., China, Russia, UK, India, Japan, Korea, Israel, etc.) all simply pitch in helping Iran to fund their research and development in Solar Energy, Wind Energy, Hydro Energy, and Geothermal Energy and forego the nuclear energy. Germany had already voluntarily started the process of doing this. It will certainly cost far less to try to coax Iran in this direction…remember the old adage our grandparents used to teach us, “you will catch more flies with honey than vinegar”. Helping Iran with R & D in Solar-Wind-Water-Geothermal in exchange for nuclear will be better for their and all of our health any way.“ The cost of any war will be far more than helping to fund their R & D in Solar-Wind-Water-Geothermal Energies. It is time for us earthlings to learn to play the cooperative game rather than only thinking/playing a zero sum game. It is time for us to shift our gear and contemplate the possibility of infinity. Our resources may be transformed and we may reach far beyond our galaxy and into the unknown. Human resource is also one form of natural resources that needs to be valued, for it may be the child from a less developed nation who will one day help us to reach another star/habitable planet . We need not confine ourselves to fighting over currently limited resources. History tells us that much can be transformed/converted and our world had been improved and had become a much more enjoyable place after we’ve decided to stop fighting over horses, thinking that horses can be the only possible mode of transporting vehicle.
Many of you may think of my question is being simplistic and naive, but I have learned in math and sciences that often time the most elegant equation or solution is the simplest. So please do not dismiss this question too quickly. Please help to spread this question to at least 10 other people that you know.
I welcome your comments/suggestions/questions/remarks regarding my question. I hope you will start asking yourself and ask others to join in contemplating/sharing/spreading this question before it is too late.
~I wish that we will all have many many more bright and sunny days~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
Allow me to share one of my long time wishes/dreams: to be able to visit sites where the Aurora Borealis (alias Northern Light) may be observed. I want to be in the presence of nature’s magnificent energy and brilliance, such mystery of dancing particles from the solar wind…. .there is no better way to describe its beauty than to show you this incredible, real time footage of the Northern Lights, Aurora Borealis filmed on Jan. 24, 2012, during the peak of a Solar Storm. Please watch carefully how the Northern Lights dance across the sky. The photographer even captured a shooting star!
I simply cannot have enough of it, so here are some more links for your viewing pleasure:
An aurora (plural: aurorae or auroras) is a natural light display in the sky particularly in the high latitude (Arctic and Antarctic) regions, caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the high altitude atmosphere (thermosphere). The charged particles originate in themagnetosphere and solar wind and, on Earth, are directed by the Earth’s magnetic field into the atmosphere. Aurora is classified as diffuse or discrete aurora. Most aurorae occur in a band known as the auroral zone which is typically 3° to 6° in latitudinal extent and at all local times or longitudes. The auroral zone is typically 10° to 20° from the magnetic pole defined by the axis of the Earth’s magnetic dipole. During a geomagnetic storm, the auroral zone will expand to lower latitudes. The diffuse aurora is a featureless glow in the sky which may not be visible to the naked eye even on a dark night and defines the extent of the auroral zone. The discrete aurora are sharply defined features within the diffuse aurora which vary in brightness from just barely visible to the naked eye to bright enough to read a newspaper at night. Discrete aurorae are usually observed only in thenight sky because they are not as bright as the sunlit sky. Aurorae occur occasionally poleward of the auroral zone as diffuse patches or arcs (polar cap arcs) which are generally invisible to the naked eye.
In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis (or the northern lights), named after the Romangoddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas, by Pierre Gassendi in 1621. Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from farther away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the Sun were rising from an unusual direction. Discrete aurorae often display magnetic field lines or curtain-like structures, and can change within seconds or glow unchanging for hours, most often in fluorescent green. The aurora borealis most often occurs near the equinoctes. The northern lights have had a number of names throughout history. The Cree call this phenomenon the “Dance of the Spirits“. In Europe, in the Middle Ages, the auroras were commonly believed a sign from God.
Its southern counterpart, the aurora australis (or the southern lights), has almost identical features to the aurora borealis and changes simultaneously with changes in the northern auroral zone and is visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, South America, New Zealand andAustralia.
Aurorae occur on other planets. Similar to the Earth’s aurora, they are visible close to the planet’s magnetic poles.
Modern style guides recommend that the names of meteorological phenomena, such as aurora borealis, be uncapitalized
Auroras result from emissions of photons in the Earth’s upper atmosphere, above 80 km (50 mi), from ionizednitrogen atoms regaining an electron, and oxygen and nitrogen atoms returning from an excited state to ground state. They are ionized or excited by the collision of solar wind and magnetospheric particles being funneled down and accelerated along the Earth’s magnetic field lines; excitation energy is lost by the emission of a photon, or by collision with another atom or molecule:
Blue or red. Blue if the atom regains an electron after it has been ionized. Red if returning to ground state from an excited state.
Oxygen is unusual in terms of its return to ground state: it can take three quarters of a second to emit green light and up to two minutes to emit red. Collisions with other atoms or molecules will absorb the excitation energy and prevent emission. Because the very top of the atmosphere has a higher percentage of oxygen and is sparsely distributed such collisions are rare enough to allow time for oxygen to emit red. Collisions become more frequent progressing down into the atmosphere, so that red emissions do not have time to happen, and eventually even green light emissions are prevented.
This is why there is a color differential with altitude; at high altitude oxygen red dominates, then oxygen green and nitrogen blue/red, then finally nitrogen blue/red when collisions prevent oxygen from emitting anything. Green is the most common of all auroras. Behind it is pink, a mixture of light green and red, followed by pure red, yellow (a mixture of red and green), and lastly pure blue.
Auroras are associated with the solar wind, a flow of ions continuously flowing outward from the Sun. The Earth’s magnetic field traps these particles, many of which travel toward the poles where they are accelerated toward Earth. Collisions between these ions and atmospheric atoms and molecules cause energy releases in the form of auroras appearing in large circles around the poles. Auroras are more frequent and brighter during the intense phase of the solar cycle when coronal mass ejections increase the intensity of the solar wind.
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
I cannot emphasize enough how effective Feed-In-Tariff would be in increasing the rate of solar and renewable installations, local job growth rate, and local economic prosperity. It’s been noted that countries with Feed-In-Tariff had the highest level of effectiveness in terms of solar energy deployment (# of MW installed) and more cost efficient way for renewable energy development. Please listen to some of the experts on Feed-In-Tariff in the field in the video clip below ( an older but very informative clip on Feed-In-Tariff):
President Clinton, I sure hope that you will consider lending your support to implementing effective Feed-In-Tariff in USA.
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
Please allow me to share this speech by our 42nd President Bill Clinton of the United States, who spoke at the 2012 ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects Agency)- Energy Innovation Summit, held at Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center, 201 Waterfront Street, National Habor, MD 20745, at 11:30 A.M.on day three (Feb. 29, 2012) of this summit. This third annual Energy Innovation Summit is designed to unite key players from all sectors of American energy innovation community to share ideas for how to lead the world in development of future generation clean energy technologies, to develop our nation’s energy resources, and to build an American economy that will last. Please listen patiently and carefully, to the keynote speech below:
As you may have remembered, one of the main reasons why I even started this site http://sunisthefuture.net , was to try to increase better understanding of an effective incentive program, Feed-In-Tariff, for renewable energy. So, I’d like to post a letter in response to President Clinton’s speech, below:
Dear President Clinton,
After having heard your wonderful speech at ARPA-E of 2012 concerning the energy issue, I feel compelled to write you, hoping that you will consider promoting one of the low hanging fruits with proven track record of success in creating local jobs, speeding up nations’ transition into renewable energy age, and bringing forth economic prosperity. This low hanging fruit is Effective Feed-In-Tariff (FIT);FIT originated in USA during Carter’s administration in 1978, but more successfully implemented in Germany and was most instrumental in establishing Germany as the leader in renewable energy world. Understanding that in order to truly enforce an effective feed-in-tariff for all renewable/clean energies in USA, it is necessary to either change feed-in rate (implementing effective feed-in rate) on a state-by-state level or change our federal law. Neither is easy. Please refer to my web site http://sunisthefuture.net: May 8-Aug. 4, 2011;Oct. 14, 2011*; and Nov. 11, 2011* posts on effective FIT. With your leadership and guidance, I hope you will consider to help promote the change necessary in order to induce the implementation of effective Feed-In-Tariff for renewable/clean energy. Then we will be able to see dramatic increase of local jobs, entrepreneurship in renewable/clean energy industry, economic prosperity, and clean energy including (and not limited to) solar rooftop installations. Only then, we will have the opportunity of gaining the leadership position in renewable energy world/age.
Kind regard,
sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Now, my question to you, my friends and readers, is: do you think President Clinton will get to read this/my letter?
One can always hope….
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
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Dear Readers & Friends,
This just came down the wire: The Indian energy group Reliance has awarded the French multinational Areva a contract to build the two 125 MW (so total of 250 MW) Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants in Rajasthan (in northwestern India), using the French company’s Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) technology. This 250 MW CSP project in India is scheduled to come online in May of 2013 and will be the largest of its kind in Asia. The first phase of the project has already begun and it will represent a reduction of around 557,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually compared with a coal-fired plant, according to Areva. India aims to build an additional 20 GW of solar capacity by 2022. The chief executive of Reliance Power JP Chalasani hinted that this may/will be the first of many solar projects to be built by the two companies, “Today’s announcement is just the beginning. We look forward to working with Areva in helping to meet India’s clean energy goals through this project.” CLFR (Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector) technology uses reflected sunlight to heat liquid-filled tubes which generate high-pressure steam that produces electricity via turbines. The CLFR solar steam generators are simple, durable, and scalable, and relatively quick to install;they are also able to generate 1.5- to 3-times more power per acre of land than other competing solar technologies, making CLFR solar steam generators the most land-efficient renewable energy technology in operation now. Here is a short video clip on how Areva Solar’s Compact Linear Fresnel Reflector (CLFR) solar steam generators can augment fossil-fired power plants without added emissions, below:
This Reliance contract with Areva solidifies Areva Solar’s position as a leading global supplier of CSP (Concentrated Solar Plant) for large-scale standalone power plants, power augmentation of fossil-fired power plants and solar hybrid applications. Areva has about 500MW of CSP capacity in operation under construction in advance development at the moment. The deal with Reliance is part of a major push by the French engineering company Areva to set up its activities in the solar sector around the world: in Australia, it has been contracted to build a 44 MW solar thermal in addition to the coal-fired Kogan Creek power station;in USA,it has secured a partnership with Tucson Electric Power to develop a solar augmentation project in Arizona. Apparently solar is not the only area of Areva’s interest; just days before, Areva had won a key deal to supply turbines to a 500 MW offshore wind project in northern France;Areva will also produce 100 of its 5 MW turbines at a new factory in the French port of Le Havre through a working partnership with Spanish utility Iberdrola and UK’s wind developer RES. Yes, one can see that solar and renewable energy world are full of efforts through cooperation and that Areva will be leaving much of its renewable energy footprints throughout our planet earth.
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
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Dear Fellow Solar Enthusiasts,
As I’ve mentioned in our previous post of April 2, 2012 of http://sunisthefuture.net, I am bringing you a view of SolFest at the Solar Living Institute in Hopland, CA. The first SolFest marked the grand opening of the Solar Living Center in 1996 and became part of the Solar Living Institute when the organization was founded in 1998. SolFest is the premier renewable energy event in the western United States. Since 1996, over 80,000 people have participated n SolFest. This year, in 2012, SolFest XV is tentatively scheduled to take place in late summer. In 2010, the SolFest XIV had outgrown the Solar Living Center in Hopland, CA, and partnered with the Redwood Empire Fairgrounds in Ukiah for a 2-day Solar & Sustainable Celebration in September 25 & 26, 2010. After a one-year hiatus, we are anticipating much inspirational speakers and activities at SolFest XV this year. Please check this web site . Come and take a look at this 12-acre Solar Living Center located 95 miles north of San Francisco on Highway 101( about a 2 hour drive from the Bay area), with the Solar 2000 module grid producing more than 160,000 kilowatt hours of power annually. Heck, you might even find a tree growing out of a car at SolFest! SolFest usually sponsors speakers on topics from straw bale building construction, permaculture, to biofuels, windmills, and solar energy. Presentations by experts in grid-tie applications, tax incentives, and solar PV and Q&A sessions will also help to improve better understanding of how we may all be able to apply solar and renewable energy into our lives. Besides learning about sustainable living, SolFest will also bring us music and fun. You will find a video clip of the SolFest 2004 at Hopland, CA, below:
~have a bright and sunny day~
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much.
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Dear Solar Enthusiasts,
As I’ve promised, I will be devoting this post to discuss The Solar Living Institute (SLI) (www.solarliving.org). The Solar Living Institute is a non-profit educational center specializing in solar training and sustainable educational classes. These classes/courses are taught either on site or online by experienced practitioners, helping students to prepare for getting jobs, creating businesses in solar industry and for learning to live more sustainably. SLI also manages the Solar Living Center, a 12-acre renewable energy and sustainable living demonstration site visited by 200,000 people annually. Ultimately, the Solar Living Institute’s mission is to promote sustainable living through: renewable energy education classes/courses; tours for schools and various organizations to demonstrate and inspire sustainable and solar living ;residential internship program for young adults to offer green tech and sustainability education in seven month session; and selling and installing solar systems in the Southwest part of USA.
In 1978, the founder and president of Real Goods and Solar Living Institute of Hopland, CA, John Schaffer, took a desolated site of 12-acres and converted it into an environmental paradise, showing how every thing can be possible in living sustainably. I’d like to take you on a tour of the Solar Living Institute with John Schaffer to see the 132 KW solar PV array on site (installed in 1999) powering 50 local homes, below:
Did you hear what John said about “only about 0.1% of US homes are now powered by solar whereas there are about 5-10% of the German homes are now powered by solar energy when Germany is actually getting less sun than we do….” We need to catch up in this journey toward energy independence and self-sufficiency! My hat’s off for John Schaffer, a living example of Solar Living for all of us!
In the next post, I would like to take you on a tour of one of the past SolFest at the Solar Living Institute, normally held in late summer of each year.
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
