It’s all done with mirrors
The world’s largest solar energy plant is going on line this summer in the Mojave Desert in California. The Ivanpah plant is a 377-megawatt power station that doesn’t use photovoltaic technology. Instead, it is a solar thermal energy plant that uses sunlight to heat water in boilers to make steam, which then turns turbines to generate electricity. [Read more…] about It’s all done with mirrors
Gill nets have a devastating impact on seabirds
According to recent research, gill nets used by fishing vessels are responsible for the deaths of at least 400,000 seabirds each year. [Read more…] about Gill nets have a devastating impact on seabirds
Clean water = Better beer
Craft brewing is a growing industry. As of last year, there were nearly 2,400 brewpubs, microbreweries, and regional craft breweries operating in the United States. [Read more…] about Clean water = Better beer
Monarch butterflies
Monarch butterflies are perhaps the most well-known butterflies in all of North America – but their future has become uncertain. [Read more…] about Monarch butterflies
Oil on the water
Canada’s oil sands deposits are found in northeastern Alberta, where few people ever travel. It would be easy to overlook them, except for the controversy surrounding the Keystone XL pipeline that would deliver crude oil from these deposits to Gulf Coast refineries. [Read more…] about Oil on the water
Keeping your beach trip healthy
As Labor Day and the end of summer approach, many of us probably hope to squeeze in a few more trips to the beach. But we may want to be cautious about where we swim.
[Read more…] about Keeping your beach trip healthy
Heavenly experiments
The Curiosity Lander is now roaming the surface of Mars, looking for evidence of life—past or present—on the red planet. Curiosity is a marvel of NASA’s engineering capabilities. It cost a lot of taxpayer dollars, but it embodies the human spirit to explore unknown lands. [Read more…] about Heavenly experiments
The cost of driving with electricity
With more and more electric cars and plug-in hybrids on the road, there is a growing interest in knowing the cost of driving using electricity. Most of us keep tabs on the price of gasoline and how it impacts our bottom line. But for people with cars that plug in, what is the relevant price? [Read more…] about The cost of driving with electricity
The ethics of birdsong apps
Tech-savvy birders are probably already familiar with digital field guides. Loaded onto smart phones and tablets, these tools put a wealth of information at your fingertips, with features including range maps, illustrations, and birdsong applications. [Read more…] about The ethics of birdsong apps
Heat waves and climate change
This summer has seen some particularly debilitating heat waves in many parts of the country. Some places have seen temperatures in the 120’s and the Northeast has boiled in hot, steamy weather for days and even weeks on end. [Read more…] about Heat waves and climate change
Invisible power plants
The mushrooming growth of rooftop solar systems is a good thing for the environment and for the overworked electric grid. However, in places like California, where there are now an estimated 150,000 such systems, utilities face a new kind of problem. [Read more…] about Invisible power plants
Have we polluted the last vast place on earth?
Back in the 1950s, when our family visited Cape Cod, my father described the ocean as too big to get polluted. There were only 3 billion or so humans occupying the planet then, and he may have been right. The oceans offered a place of infinite dilution. [Read more…] about Have we polluted the last vast place on earth?
Toxic blues
I’m a big fan of blueberries, so on our summer vacation in Maine, it was a treat to drive by the blue berry barrens, many of which are now converted to large farms for commercial harvest. [Read more…] about Toxic blues
Elephants and their ivory
There’s been a global ban on trading “new” ivory for more than 23 years. Still, the fate of the world’s elephants hangs in the balance, due to escalating demand for black market ivory. [Read more…] about Elephants and their ivory
Trains, planes, and automobiles
When taking to the skies this summer, the environmentally-minded among us might feel a pang of guilt about the carbon footprint of our air travels. And, according to a report just published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, that pang is justified. [Read more…] about Trains, planes, and automobiles
Powassan encephalitis
[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/EW-08-05-13-Powassan-Encephalitis.mp3|titles=EW 08-05-13 Powassan Encephalitis]
The number of tick-borne illnesses reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is on the rise. Lyme disease leads the pack, with some 35,000 cases reported annually. [Read more…] about Powassan encephalitis
Finding the signal before the collapse
What do earthquakes, heart attacks, seizures, and the collapse of stock markets and fisheries have in common? They’re all examples of what scientists call “tipping points” or “regime shifts.” [Read more…] about Finding the signal before the collapse
Tilting at windmills
Throughout the Midwest, wind energy has caught on. In that region, ten states produce more than 10% of their electricity from wind, and Iowa and South Dakota top 20%. For the country as a whole, wind energy supplies 3.5% of our electricity, and at the current rate of growth this could reach 20% by 2030. [Read more…] about Tilting at windmills
An electric highway
[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/EW-07-31-13-Electric-Highway.mp3|titles=EW 07-31-13 Electric Highway]