Coal

By Juan Cole | — Compared to Germany and Spain, the United States is woefully backward in its development of wind, solar and other renewable sources of energy for electricity generation. But there is some good news on this front, as CleanTech notes. Utility-scale solar power generation in the United States doubled in the past […]

Climate Change

Antarctica Glaciers Melting 3 Times Faster than 10 Years Ago

contributors

American Geophysical Union | — West Antarctic melt rate has tripled “Joint Press Release WASHINGTON, D.C. – A comprehensive, 21-year analysis of the fastest-melting region of Antarctica has found that the melt rate of glaciers there has tripled during the last decade. The glaciers in the Amundsen Sea Embayment in West Antarctica are hemorrhaging ice […]

Climate Change

Why it makes Economic Sense for Universities to Divest from Fossil Fuels

contributors

By John Quiggin, The University of Queensland The controversy ignited by the Australian National University in October, when it decided to sell its shares in seven resources companies, has raised two important questions about divestment from assets such as fossil fuels. The first is whether divestment is an economically prudent choice, and the second is […]

astronomy and outer space

How human-emitted Carbon Dioxide Circulates in Earth’s Atmosphere (NASA)

contributors

NASA Goddard | — “An ultra-high-resolution NASA computer model has given scientists a stunning new look at how carbon dioxide in the atmosphere travels around the globe. Plumes of carbon dioxide in the simulation swirl and shift as winds disperse the greenhouse gas away from its sources. The simulation also illustrates differences in carbon dioxide […]

Climate Change

G20 conclude “Climate Change Summit:” Obama Pressures Australia as PM presents lonely defense of Coal

contributors

By Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra, (The Conversation) G20 nations have supported “strong and effective” action on climate change – but included some equivocal wording on the timing for issuing post-2020 targets and on the Green Climate Fund to accommodate differences among them. The communique issued by the leaders today said that consistent with the […]

Climate Change

A Day Late & a Dollar Short: Obama & China agree on Languid Climate Goals

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole The good news is that US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping have reached an agreement on limiting carbon emissions in their two countries. The US puts out 5.5 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide a year, and China does 7 – 9 billion. The US did 5 billion metric […]

Climate Change

Sea Rise not Distant: Americans on Coast could see 200 Floods a Year before Mortgage paid Off

contributors

Union of Concerned Scientists: “As sea level rises higher over the next 15 to 30 years, tidal flooding is expected to occur more often, cause more disruption, and even render some areas unusable — all within the time frame of a typical home mortgage. Learn more at http://www.ucsusa.org/encroachingtides ” Union of Concerned Scientists: “Tidal Flooding […]

Coal

Denmark to ban Coal in Favor of Wind Energy

contributors

Wochit General News “Denmark’s climate minister said on Saturday that Denmark should ban coal use by 2025 to make the Nordic nation a leader in fighting global warming, adding to green measures ranging from wind energy to bicycle power. Denmark has already taken big steps to break reliance on high-polluting coal – wind turbines are […]

Climate Change

If Germany Drops Coal, can the Industry Survive?

contributors

By Jake Richardson Germany is looking into cutting its use of coal power, at the same time that it is cutting out nuclear. If it does, there could be a ripple effect because Germany is a major player in the European energy market. A Berlin-based journalist said that Germany’s emphasis on renewables is already impacting […]