Flat Solar Panels Need Cleaning ; Solar Power Tower in USA

I think NASA previously discovered this on Mars with Opportunity and Spirit who had power levels increase after minor winds blew away some of the accumulated dust on the rovers’ solar panels.

While dozens of dust devils have passed before Spirit’s cameras, some have made contact, sweeping dust from the rover’s solar panels. The solar panels are then able to take in more sunlight and convert it into electricity, keeping Spirit “alive” for even longer.

Flat oriented solar panels accumulate dust which blocks light, and can use rinsing. The angled ones on roof tops don’t need as much cleaning, because rain tends to do a good enough job rinsing them. Small dirt pools collect in the lower edge of the tilted panels.

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In exciting news, a large Solar Power Tower facility is switching on in the USA, thanks in part to investment from Google.org. There is a large facility in Spain in operation as well.

These power generators make steam from the heat of the sun, using what is essentially the magnifying glass trick used to burn things with sunlight. Instead of one large circular lens, a computer controlled array of small mirrors is used to focus sunlight onto a tower which pushes steam through an electrical turbine. The heat source is as close to free and renewable as you can get.

UDP – Saskatchewan’s Solution to Low Power Bills?

“Why isn’t there a public meeting of this size talking about solar and wind?” asked one man.

That was probably me who asked that last night, and if it wasn’t, I would have said it. And the newspaper article mentions it, but it needs to be stressed again that even though there were three sides (3 if you count undecided) to the story, that the overwhelming majority of those in attendance on the public record were against nuclear power. The majority came with facts, figures, peer reviewed studies, and refuted the points in the UDP’s report! Several came as living examples of people who do not require nuclear or coal power for their homes’ base load. There are few technological reasons you or I cannot join their independence, mostly just political reasons.

The parodies in the comments at the Leader-Post article are a hoot, keep them up. The only bigger joke around is that there are people unwilling to accept that we could use our existing coal plants as backup to solar, and wind generation, while using conservation methods to completely invalidate the need for uranium to power our homes and industry.

Remember, progress is only positive if you’re in a better position after you move than you were previously. If we “progress” from coal to uranium, we are still using a non-renewable resource, and we’re left with toxic waste in one space from mining in U in another, instead of mining coal in one space, and putting toxic ash all over our air. If we progress to renewable sources of electricity and heat with batteries and heat storage too, then we’re really going somewhere good.

Brad Wall, take off the uranium industry’s blinders, and let your party get serious again about climate change, pollution, and keeping utility rates affordable for Saskatchewan people. There are a lot of jobs to be made in solar and wind technologies, so lets get started yesterday already!

ADDED:

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Hat tip to The Jurist

Who Killed Canada?

I’m going to watch this video based on the book by Mel Hurtig. It was recommended to me by a Green. Interestingly a different Green supporter 4 years ago mentioned this book to me too. It should be good.

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On Sunday Patty and I watched the last half of a ridiculous movie on TV called “Sugar and Spice” [2/10], and “Madagascar 2” [8/10] which I have a feeling would have made more sense if I’d seen the first of the two. On Saturday I rewatched “The Wedding Crashers” [7/10] a fun movie that was badly edited by censors so it could run on CTV with fewer mentions of breasts and swears.

On the way to the Galaxy theatre, we picked up a free mirror from usedregina.com and I hope to one day use it as a solar collector/redirector. Otherwise it will enable me to watch television from a location around a corner from where the TV sits. Also garnered from usedregina.com on the weekend was the missing part to a bed in the guest room, saving me about $40. I spent half of the money saved and gave a generous tip at Izzy Magoo’s, a 50’s style diner in the north west of Regina.

Anyone know why someone would throw out an inflated tire donut with a slightly rusty rim (on one side)? Me neither. Bet you can guess what abandoned stuff I saw today.