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GreenRay Solar Technology Aims to Bring the Sun Home

GreenRayGreenRay Inc, a solar energy innovation company based in Westford Massachusetts, USA, aims to bring practical solar powered electricity systems to private homes. Using an improved system of photovoltaic (PV) solar modular panels, GreenRay’s solar system designs are being developed to create solar energy into AC electric power which can either be used directly in a home or office or sold back to the local electricity grid.

Compared to other solar energy systems, this improved solar panel concept is said to reduce installation time, is more flexible in size than comparable systems, has mo optimized “on site” performance, and enables to system owner to expand it later on as per his needs.

By not requiring direct electrical current (DC) to have to be converted into alternating current (AC), the system is “ready to go” as soon as it is installed, enabling the owner to have electrical power immediately, and without the need for special engineering assistance. Since the company is focusing on systems for private homes, GreenRay’s concept claims to save as much as 40% of the total installation costs, said to be one of highest expenses for solar energy systems.

GreenRay’s president, Miles C. Russell, has 30 years experience in the photovoltaic panel industry, and designed a special mounting system for solar PV modules which is now being utilized in his company’s solar panel systems. The company’s staff also includes Zachary King, VP of Engineering, with 7 years experience in the PV module industry, and Ruel Little, VP of Technology, with 11 years experience in PV system and component design.

GreenRay’s AC modular systems enabled it to receive sizable funding assistance from the US Government Department of Energy (up to a sum of $ 2,300,000), available over a three year period. It also won third place in a Clean Energy Competition sponsored by Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT) which enabled the company to eligible for an additional funding of $3.2 million for developing its unique AC modular panels.

Russell and his colleagues are very optimistic for the future of the company, whose product will carry a 20 year comprehensive warranty, and will be much simpler to install than competing solar energy systems. His company hopes to have this unique AC solar module system available very soon to customers worldwide.

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Environmental News Flash: The Price of Cooking, Scientific Advancements, and Eastern Smoke


Palm Oil Industry threatens the Rain Forests

Right now palm oil is the second, behind soybean, most produced oil in world. It is estimated that within the next five years, palm oil will surpass soybean oil to become the leading vegetable oil produced.

Because of this huge demand, thousands of acres of rainforest are being cut down every year to make way for new plantations. As a result, hundreds of animals are loosing their habit including the endangered Sumatran Tiger, Asian Elephant, Sumatran Rhinoceros and both the Sumatra and Borneo Orangutan.


Hi-Tech companies take aim at Eco-Tech

Intel and International Business Machines have joined the parade of technology companies making alternative-energy plays, announcing Monday separate efforts to put their manufacturing smarts to work cranking out solar cells.

Solar cells, which convert light to electricity, have long relied on silicon, the same material upon which companies such as IBM and Intel build computer chips.


Carbon Emissions are on the rise

It had been known, but disputed, for a year that China was the new king of carbon, having pumped more of the heat-trapping gas into the atmosphere annually than the United States. Now, with a new analysis from the Netherlands, the rise of China’s polluting power has been confirmed.

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Al Gore’s global warming message reaches the Royal Palace at Oslo

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore may not yet be running again for the Presidency, but his message is definitely clear: unless immediate steps are made to protect the environment and reverse global warming, our continued life on Earth is definitely at risk. Speaking during an hour long interview on CNN’s Larry King Live program last July, Mr. Gore related in dept his opinions on how lack of intense effort on the part of the present U.S. Administration is spelling disaster to our quality of life, if not life itself.

Mr. Gore’s Academy Award winning documentary film, An Inconvenient Truth, gave a not very optimistic account on how the worlds’ eco-system has been severely damaged by Man’s obsession with the use of fossil fuels and other dangerous pollutants, which, in Gore’s opinion, is largely responsible for the state of our environment, including melting Arctic and Antarctic ice shelves at an alarming pace. Gore’s concern for world environment problems goes back many years when he became concerned with many species of animals becoming extinct including a small species of owl that used to inhabit the redwood forest regions of Oregon and Washington State. That concern as well as for the decrease in the atmosphere’s ozone layer (that protective layer against the sun’s damaging radiation) gave him the title of “Mr. Ozone” and made him the brunt of jokes by entertainment comedians including NBC’s Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien.

America isn’t the only ecological culprit though, as fast developing nations such as China are consuming fossil fuels in alarming amounts with little or no ecological controls. China’s number of private automobiles alone has more than quadrupled in past five years alone; and its heavy industries have become one of the world’s prime consumers of fuels such as coal and fuel oil, and has turned this country housing more than a fifth of the world’s population into one of the worst polluted.

The melting of Arctic and Antarctic ice is expected cause the worlds oceans to rise at least 7 to 10 meters in the next 10 to 20 years. That’s enough to inundate most world coastal towns and cities, in which at least a billion of the world’s population live. Outside of the possible extinction of many varieties of animal species, including polar bears, seals and walruses, and many species of birds, The oceans themselves will be less able to support marine animals and vegetation as they will become too acid in their content, thus killing the marine vegetation on which many marine animals thrive, and reducing the water’s oxygen content by as much as 25%.

Judging from current realities regarding severe changes in our environment, particularly weather patterns, people are laughing less at “Mr. Ozone” and are now beginning to listen to his warning. An Inconvenient Truth has won Mr. Gore both an Academy Award and an Emmy, America’s most prestigious awards from both the motion picture and television industries.

And now, to crown his achievements for the benefit of Mankind, Al Gore has been awarded the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize along with a special U.N. scientific panel: the International Panel for Climate Change (IPCC). Both Gore and the IPCC will share equally in the prize which will be awarded in a special ceremony in the Norwegian capital of Oslo.

Whether of not Gore does decide to throw his hat into the Democratic Party Presidential race, his message is certainly worth listening to and acting upon. Despite the current Administration’s apprehensions, a few years of ecological ‘adjustment’ is paramount, including drastic curtailment of the use of fossil fuels and switching over to more environmentally friendly energy sources, such as solar energy and hydrogen based fuels. If this doesn’t occur, our future on this planet, an “island we cannot leave”, may be very unpleasant indeed.

Please continue your crusade, Mr. Gore; and perhaps more and more people will listen. We simply have to listen before it will be too late.

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Using Modern Sunscreen Lotions

Summertime is beach time for millions of people all over the world. Due to recent concern regarding the increase of ultraviolet radiation due to depletions in the earth’s ozone layer, sunscreen preparations had been made stronger, and terms such as UVA/UVB and SPF 15 are becoming household terms. Despite aggressive media campaigns to tell people to wear more protective clothing when outside, and especially at the beach, most of these warnings are still disregarded to a great extent, resulting in more and cases of skin damage ranging from serious sunburn to skin cancer.

Many sunscreen preparations said to protect people from the harmful effects of the sun’s rays, actually offer only partial protection. There are preparations that, if used properly, do offer much more protection – providing complete instructions are followed. A good sunscreen preparation should be rated to give protection against the UVA classification of ultraviolet sunlight – the strongest classification. UVA rays penetrate the skin deeper and have more chance to cause skin cancer or melanoma later on. A top quality preparation should also over at least SPF 15 protection; which means that people who have applied this strength of preparation can be exposed to the sun’s rays at least 15 times longer that those without this kind of protection. While SPF 15 preparations are now considered adequate in many locations, there are countries, notably Australia, where preparations going up to SPF 45 are available. Australia is now rated as having the highest levels of solar radiation. Mediterranean countries, including Israel, are not far behind in regards to the dangers of solar thermal radiation.

Even if one goes to the beach “armed” with the strongest sunscreen preparation that money can buy, there is still no guarantee that preparation alone will give adequate protection, even if all the directions are followed as closely as possible. Even if the preparation is continuously reapplied following a dip in the ocean, those planning to spend long periods at either a beach, or outside swimming pool should limit the time that their bodies are actually exposed to the sun’s rays. Small children, who have much more sensitive skin than adults, should be covered with a bathing suit that only lets their hands an feet remain uncovered. Large beach hats should be worn by both children and adults.

As sunscreen preparations usually wash off if a person goes into the water, the sunscreen preparation should be immediately re-applied afterwards. Beach umbrellas and other means of proving shade should be used; and beach goers should drink plenty of water, as dehydration can happen very easily, especially to children. A person’s skin tone is also a very important factor regarding how long one can expose himself or herself to the sun – if at all. And most important, it is advisable to not lay in the sun between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

While many of these advisories may seem to take away from the enjoyment of a beach, lake, or pool outing, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

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Al Gore’s Global Warming Wake Up Call

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore may not yet be running again for the Presidency, but his message is definitely clear, unless immediate steps are made to protect the environment and reverse global warming, our continued life on Earth is definitely at risk. Speaking during a recent hour long interview on CNN’s Larry King Live program, Mr. Gore related in depth his opinions on how lack of intense effort on the part of the present U.S. Administration is spelling disaster to our quality of life, if not life itself.

Mr. Gore’s Academy Award winning documentary film, An Inconvenient Truth, gave a not very optimistic account on how the worlds’ eco-system has been severely damaged by Man’s obsession with the use of fossil fuels and other dangerous pollutants, which, in Gore’s opinion, is largely responsible for the state of our environment, including melting Arctic and Antarctic ice shelves at an alarming pace. Gore’s concern for world environment problems goes back many years when he became concerned with many species of animals becoming extinct including a small species of owl that used to inhabit the redwood forest regions of Oregon and Washington State. That concern as well as for the decrease in the atmosphere’s ozone layer (that protective layer against the sun’s damaging radiation) gave him the title of “Mr. Ozone” and made him the brunt of jokes by entertainment comedians including NBC’s Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien.

Judging from current realities regarding severe changes in our environment, particularly weather patterns, people are laughing less at “Mr. Ozone” and are now beginning to listen to his warning. Gore’s severe criticism of the Bush Administration’s lack of attention to this increasing problem is one the former VP’s main topics these days. That President George Bush has refused to have his country join the global effort to curtail use of fossil fuels “because it would be damaging to the U.S. economy” is most likely due the President’s own family interest in the oil business, as well as that of his Vice President, Dick Chaney, whose long career with the international oil well servicing company Halliburton has been in the news several times. The Bush family also appears to have close relations with the Saudi Royal Family, from whose country the U.S. still receives nearly 20% of its total petroleum supplies. Although some current attention is beginning to filter out of the Oval Office of the White House, especially in the aftermath of American eco-disasters like Hurricane Katrina, this attention is far less than it should be to help reverse what may become an irreversible ecological trend.

America isn’t the only ecological culprit though, as fast developing nations such as China are consuming fossil fuels in alarming amounts with little or no ecological controls. China’s number of private automobiles alone has more than quadrupled in past five years alone; and its heavy industries have become one of the world’s prime consumers of fuels such as coal and fuel oil, and has turned this country housing more than a fifth of the world’s population into one of the worst polluted.

The melting of Arctic and Antarctic ice is expected cause the worlds oceans to rise at least 7 to 10 meters in the next 10 to 20 years. That’s enough to inundate most world coastal towns and cities, in which at least a billion of the world’s population live. Outside of the possible extinction of many varieties of animal species, including polar bears, seals and walruses, and many species of birds, The oceans themselves will be less able to support marine animals and vegetation as they will become too acid in their content, thus killing the marine vegetation on which many marine animals thrive, and reducing the water’s oxygen content by as much as 25%.

Whether of not Gore does decide to throw his hat into the Democratic Party Presidential race, his message is certainly worth listening to and acting upon. Despite the current Administration’s apprehensions, a few years of ecological ‘adjustment’ is paramount, including drastic curtailment of the use of fossil fuels and switching over to more environmentally friendly energy sources, such as solar energy and hydrogen based fuels. If this doesn’t occur, our future on this planet, an “island we cannot leave”, may be very unpleasant indeed.

We simply have to listen before it will be too late.

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Organic Consumers Association – Promoting Organic Lifestyles

Organic Consumers AssociationThe Organic Consumers Association (OCA) was formed as a ‘grass roots’ association of concerned people who believe in promoting, and protecting, the interests and welfare of organic products consumers all over the world. Headquartered in Finland, Minnesota , OCA affiliate branches are found in Canada, Japan, India, to name a few.

With an estimated 50 million people in the U.S. alone who purchase organic products, the association claims a membership of more than 850,000 nationwide, including thousands of business offering organic foods and products, including cosmetics.

Formed in 1998, as a result of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s attempt to “nationalize” organic products standards, OCA member business and interest groups maintain a constant effort to prevent the “Wall -Martization” of America’s economy, including the marketing of organic products.

OCA members deal with a number of important topics connected with organic products including genetic engineering, corporate accountability (in regards to organic issues), and the environment’s ability to sustain itself, despite the damage done to it by Mankind.

The OCA Organic Agenda Program for the years 2000 – 2015 include the following:

1. Conversion of American agriculture to be at least 30% organic by the year 2015
2. Fair trade and economic justice for smaller organic enterprises
3. A Global moratorium on genetically engineered crops and livestock
4. Phasing out of industrial or “factory farming” agriculture
5. A universal health care program with emphasis on nutrition and prevention
6. Less dependence on energy based on fossil fuels, with more emphasis on
environmentally friendly sources of energy, such as solar and hydro-electric
power

The OCA is non-profit, with the interests of its members clearly in mind. Its main interest it to help enable a healthy, fair, and supportable network of production for organic food products. The association puts out a weekly e-publication, Organic Bytes, and a semi-annual ‘hard copy’ newsletter, Organic View. Association members can find out all happenings concerning the association’s activities by reading these very informative publications. Sponsors include a wide variety of organic foods and products manufacturers, including Eden Organic Foods (a Coop or more than 300 family owned farms) and Earth Creations, a “made in USA” organic clothing company.

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The ‘Electric’ Sun

With dwindling crude oil now hovering in the $65 to $70 per barrel range, and worries about continued global warming being one of the worlds most talked about environmental topics, interest in solar energy is becoming more and more popular in today’s world. That’s right, the sun, or Sol as many still refer to that huge, gaseous ball of energy, 93 million miles away; around which the plant earth rotates once every 365 days. In fact, we humans, and all life for that matter, are so utterly dependant on the sun’s continuous supply of energy, that if deprived of it – for even a few hours, drastic climatic and environment effects will take place.

Interest in harnessing energy from the sun is not new; and even ancient philosophers and astronomers constantly tried to think up ways to utilize more of the sun’s life giving energy. Within the past fifty years, these dreams have begun to become reality as scientists and engineers have begun to create the means of generating energy from the sun’s rays. Israel is one of the pioneers in this endeavor, as the leaders of this tiny country realized from the outset that with little natural energy resources available, ways must be found to create energy at the lowest costs possible. These endeavors have resulted in the majority of homes and apartment buildings having solar energy converters to heat water. Though primitive by many standards, these sun boilers, are composed of two or three large solar ‘collection’ plates, warming water as it flows through them, and afterwards stores the water in insulated tanks for use afterwards – especially at night. Condominium buildings in Israel are now required to have a series of these plates installed to collect enough hot water for use by several families at a time.

While this method has helped save on energy costs, more ambitious researchers all over the world are working of ways to use the sun’s energy to create electricity; enough electricity to run one’s electric powered car, operate appliances and machinery, and keep people comfortably cool in summer and warm in winter. These new photovoltaic or solar electric systems are being designed to convert the sun’s rays into plentiful, low cost electricity. Photovoltaic or PV systems evolve around a specially made crystalline silicon material resembling strips of PVC. This material, when hit by solar rays, creates electricity by a photo-chemical process not much different than the more primitive sun boilers already mentioned. Enough of this material, built into the roof and hood of a car, or affixed to the porch or roof of a house, can create enough electricity to actually operate electricity powered motors – as long as sun shines, that is. The main challenge up to now is storing this energy for use when Sol has either gone to bed or is ‘hiding’ behind a blanket of clouds. Scientific laboratories are still trying to perfect fuel cells and other energy storing devices that will enable this electricity to be stored (like in a large battery) and used as needed. Obviously, solar energy powered devices will work better in locations where the sun shines at least 300 or more days a year; which is why locations such as the Middle East, the American Southwest, and other ’sun friendly’ locations will benefit the most from solar power.

Solar energy is also one of the most environmentally friendly energy sources as well; and could one day help reverse the damage already caused by over-use of fossil fuels. It’s about time everyone, including major oil companies, see the potential benefit of “going (solar powered) electric”.

Source: US Department Energy Site

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Hot – and Getting Hotter! The Earth Heats Up from Global Warming

It’s a hot time in this old world all right! New scientific studies are showing worrisome findings that the earth’s temperatures are reaching the warmest they’ve been in over a million years. That’s bad news for the 6.5 billion inhabitants of this planet, as well as for most of the animals who inhabit it – especially those inhabiting colder regions. These studies show that the earth’s temperature has been rising rapidly, in the area of nearly 0.36 degrees Fahrenheit or 0.2 degrees Celsius in the past 30 years alone. The average surface temperature is now around 15-16 degrees Celsius; and if it rises another 1 degree C. serious, possible irreversible effects will occur, so said a researcher from NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

The higher temperatures are mostly being caused by human induced heat from burning forest land for crop planting, as well as exhaust emissions from automobiles and coal and oil burning power facilities, the researcher, James Hansen, noted. Another researcher, Alan Robock from Rutgers University, noted that further temperature rises of 2 to 3 degrees Celsius will make the earths temperature the same as at was around 3 million years ago, when the ocean levels were about 30 feet higher than they are today.

What this means for all of us, including Wally the Walrus and his pals is that life will be quite different on old Terra Firma, especially in the Earth’s Arctic regions, where effects of global warming are becoming even more accelerated. Arctic regions, where polar ice and snow actually reflected the suns rays, now have areas of dry land and open water which are absorbing solar heat. Animals such as Wally and his friends, as swell as Polar Bears, seals, and other Arctic creatures could even become extinct within the next hundred years.

How are these changes effecting people living in other areas, including here in Israel, is becoming evident with different weather patterns and temperature changes. For example: those hot, sultry, summer days (and especially nights) used to come only in about mid to late July. Now, we feel them in mid June! Winter temperatures are warmer as well, with far too many balmy, even summer-like days in mid-January. It might not be long before average summer temperatures in Israel may be similar to what they are now in countries like Kuwait and Dubai!

If the oceans do rise, even 10 or 15 feet, large coastal cities will have massive problems, especially those on the coast of large oceans including New York City, Antwerp, Hong Kong and Tokyo, may find themselves partially under water. Even Israeli coastal cities will not be immune, as some of this water will eventually find itself into the Mediterranean.

It’s not too late to try to reverse some of these trends, although these efforts will drastically affect the lives of most people with use of fossil fuels being either severely curtailed or even banned altogether. For creatures like Wally, however, these efforts may be too little – too late.