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Archive for the ‘sustainability’ category: Page 154

Apr 24, 2023

Current Climate: Americans Want The U.S. At Net Zero By 2050

Posted by in categories: business, climatology, sustainability

Today is Earth Day.

That said, Americans don’t fully trust the reliability of renewable sources and 67% of the population favors a mix of renewables and fossil fuels, with only about 31% in favor of completely phasing out fossil fuels altogether.


This week’s Current Climate, which every Saturday brings you the latest news about the business of sustainability. Sign up to get it in your inbox every week.

Continue reading “Current Climate: Americans Want The U.S. At Net Zero By 2050” »

Apr 24, 2023

Trillions of Miles Away — Distant Supernovae May Impact the Diversity of Life on Earth

Posted by in categories: biological, evolution, habitats, space, sustainability

A new study published in Ecology and Evolution by Henrik Svensmark of DTU Space has shown that the explosion of stars, also known as supernovae, has greatly impacted the diversity of marine life over the past 500 million years.

The fossil record has been extensively studied, revealing significant variations in the diversity of life forms throughout geological history. A fundamental question in evolutionary biology is identifying the processes responsible for these fluctuations.

The new research uncovers a surprising finding: the fluctuation in the number of nearby supernovae closely corresponds to changes in biodiversity of marine genera over the last 500 million years. This correlation becomes apparent when the marine diversity curve is adjusted to account for changes in shallow coastal marine regions, which are significant as they provide habitat for most marine life and offer new opportunities for evolution as they expand or shrink. Thus, alterations in available shallow marine regions play a role in shaping biodiversity.

Apr 23, 2023

Comment les activités spatiales peuvent-elles évoluer vers plus de durabilité ?

Posted by in categories: policy, satellites, space, space travel, strategy, sustainability

Remark: This article is from The Conversation France written by Victor DOS SANTOS PAULINO & Nonthapat PULSIRI (V&N) — Experts from Toulouse Business School and The SIRIUS Chair (France)

Lorsque nous parlons d’espace, nous pensons aux étoiles que nous voyons la nuit ou à de bons films de science-fiction. Or, l’espace comprend également tous les satellites et engins qui sont lancés depuis la Terre. Dans certains engins spatiaux, il y a des astronautes, comme l’Américaine Christina Koch ou le Français Thomas Pesquet, qui voyagent pendant plusieurs jours ou mois pour de nombreuses missions.

Pendant ce temps, plus de 8 000 satellites non habités opèrent sur les orbites terrestres pour améliorer la vie quotidienne. Par exemple, les satellites de communication contribuent à améliorer l’accès à Internet dans les zones blanches, les satellites d’observation sont essentiels pour les prévisions météorologiques et les satellites de navigation (GPS) sont indispensables pour les besoins de transport actuels et futurs tels que les véhicules autonomes.

Les progrès dans le secteur spatial offrent aujourd’hui de nouvelles opportunités dans la mise en orbite de constellations de milliers de satellites (par exemple, la flotte Starlink lancée par SpaceX, la société de l’homme d’affaires américain Elon Musk) ou encore dans l’exploitation minière spatiale et le tourisme spatial. Certains pays (dont la France et les États-Unis) ont par ailleurs annoncé que soutenir leur écosystème spatial constituait une priorité pour dynamiser l’économie.

Continue reading “Comment les activités spatiales peuvent-elles évoluer vers plus de durabilité ?” »

Apr 19, 2023

Axiom announces new government human spaceflight program

Posted by in categories: government, space, sustainability

COLORADO SPRINGS — Axiom Space has introduced a new program to allow countries to create human spaceflight programs without needing to develop their own infrastructure or other capabilities.

The Axiom Space Access Program, announced April 17, offers countries a tiered approach to conducting research on the International Space Station or Axiom’s future commercial space station, as well as flying their own astronauts.

The program is effectively a “space program in a box,” said Tejpaul Bhatia, chief revenue officer at Axiom, in an interview during the 38th Space Symposium. “The real key is that turnkey access at affordable, sustainable and predictable rates.”

Apr 18, 2023

A new microwave technology can ease solar cell recycling

Posted by in categories: solar power, sustainability

WangAnQi/iStock.

But now we’re learning that researchers in Sydney may have found a way to tackle this issue.

Apr 17, 2023

Research provides new insight into quantum effects in lithium sulfur batteries

Posted by in categories: computing, mobile phones, quantum physics, sustainability

Lithium-ion batteries power our lives.

Because they are lightweight, have and are rechargeable, the batteries power many products, from laptops and cell phones to electric cars and toothbrushes.

However, current have reached the limit of how much energy they can store. That has researchers looking for more powerful and cheaper alternatives.

Apr 17, 2023

Sorting Ions

Posted by in category: sustainability

Researchers predict that a “flashing” electric ratchet could separate same-charge ions by their diffusion coefficients, a possibility that could improve the energy efficiency of processes such as water desalination and purification.

Apr 17, 2023

Vertical farm cuts energy use 75 per cent

Posted by in categories: energy, food, sustainability

A vertical farm built inside a greenhouse in Texas can produce hundreds of thousands of heads of lettuce with significantly less energy than usual.

By James Dinneen

Apr 17, 2023

Singapore approves 16 species of insects including silkworms and grasshopper for human consumption

Posted by in categories: food, government, health, sustainability

Future food.


Think about grasshopper fries, a protein bar made of crickets or silkworm cocoons. As unconventional as it may sound, Singapore is trying to make insect food mainstream. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) has given approval to 16 species of insects, such as crickets, silkworms and grasshoppers for human consumption.

Continue reading “Singapore approves 16 species of insects including silkworms and grasshopper for human consumption” »

Apr 16, 2023

Tesla Megapack project breaks ground, Arizona’s largest project yet

Posted by in categories: energy, sustainability

A new Tesla Megapack project has broken ground in Arizona, and when it comes online in 2024, it will be the state’s largest energy storage system.

For utilities, battery energy storage is one of the most helpful new technologies they can employ to reduce fossil fuel dependence and increase the reliability of their associated grid. By holding onto excess power generated during lulls in demand, power companies can more easily address peak demand and, importantly, reduce costs. Now, a new Tesla Megapack energy storage system is set to do just that in Arizona.

The Sierra Estrella energy storage facility, constructed by utility company Salt River Project (SRP) and energy system constructor Plus Power LLC, will be the largest of its kind in Arizona. The massive network of Tesla Megapacks will have a capacity of 1,000MWh, enough energy to power 56,000 homes for four hours. According to previous information released by SRP, the project was set to cost $400 million, but this does not account for the recent Tesla Megapack price cut.