2018 November | Energy Equality For All

30Nov 2018 by Energy Equality No Comments

What causes climate change? Carbon isotopes show it’s fossil fuels.

Scientists can measure how much of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is caused by us. To identify the cause of global warming, scientists study the carbon in our atmosphere. Powell: “Carbon has three varieties: three different isotopes, all with the same number of protons, but three different numbers of neutrons.” James Powell of the National Physical Sciences Consortium says these isotopes are found in different proportions in different substances. For example, the carbon found in plants has a distinct ratio of the isotopes carbon-12 and carbon-13. There’s also a difference between the carbon isotopes in living plants and those in fossil fuels, which are made from plants that died millions of years ago. That’s because plants contain the radioactive isotope carbon-14, which decays over time. Powell: “Geological materials like…

29Nov 2018 by Energy Equality No Comments

Meet the microgrid, the technology poised to transform electricity

Uncategorized

By David Roberts and Alvin Chang This is the path to a cleaner, more reliable, more resilient energy grid. If we want a livable climate for future generations, we need to slow, stop, and reverse the rise in global temperatures. To do that, we need to stop burning fossil fuels for energy. To do that, we need to generate lots of carbon-free electricity and get as many of our energy uses as possible (including transportation and industry) hooked up to the electricity grid. Electrify everything! We need a greener grid. But that’s not all. The highly digital modern world also demands a more reliable grid, capable of providing high-quality power to facilities like hospitals or data centers, where even brief brownouts can cost money or lives. The renewable energy sources…

28Nov 2018 by Energy Equality No Comments

U.S. impacts of climate change are intensifying, federal report says

Climate Change, Global Warming

Doyle Rice, USA TODAY A massive report issued by the Trump administration on Friday emphasizes the dire threat that human-caused global warming poses to the United States and its citizens. "Earth’s climate is now changing faster than at any point in the history of modern civilization, primarily as a result of human activities," researchers say in the report, officially Volume II of the National Climate Assessment. (Volume I was released last year.) The 1,600-page report details the climate and economic impacts U.S. residents will see if drastic action is not taken to address climate change. "The impacts of global climate change are already being felt in the United States and are projected to intensify in the future," the researchers say. The last few years have smashed records for damaging weather in the United States, costing nearly…