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After a historic but awkward comet landing, the robot probe Philae is now stable and sending pictures - but there are concerns about its battery life. The lander bounced twice, initially about 1km back out into space, before settling in the shadow of a cliff, 1km from its intended target site. It may now be problematic to get enough sunlight to charge its battery systems. -- The key issue vexing controllers right now is the lighting conditions. Philae is receiving about 1.5 hours of illumination during every 12-hour rotation of the comet. This will be insufficient to top up its...

A new kind of solar cell could store electrical energy without any help from traditional batteries, according to a new study. Researchers at Ohio State University, in Columbus, have developed what they're calling the world's first solar battery — a hybrid device that combines the energy-capturing abilities of a solar cell with the energy-storing capabilities of a battery. The new cell could lower the cost of harvesting renewable energy from the sun by as much as 25 percent, according to the researchers. [Top 10 Craziest Environmental Ideas] The key to the device's success is a mesh solar panel that allows...

Reuters sources inside Nissan are saying the production of batteries inTennessee for the all-electric Leaf, which stimulus-subsidizing U.S. taxpayers backed with a $1.4 billion loan, could be eliminated. According to the report, at minimum there is sharp debate over whether the company will continue to manufacture electric vehicle batteries in-house or contract with an outside supplier. Nissan partner Renault, which has 43.4 percent shareholder ownership in the joint company, is said to be pushing for outsourcing battery production – possibly to LG Chem. None who revealed the information were identified for the Reuters story. “We set out to be...

Article is excerpted per Copyright List. The NFL and the NFL Players Association have agreed to a neutral arbitrator to hear the appeal for indefinitely suspended former Ravens running back Ray Rice. No hearing date or hearing officer have been determined yet, though, as talks continue between NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. Smith addressed the development in an email to NFL players this afternoon, noting that potential candidates for the arbitration have been exchanged.

(Reuters) - Nissan (7201.T) boss Carlos Ghosn is preparing to cut battery manufacturing, people familiar with the matter said, in a new reversal on electric cars that has reopened deep divisions with alliance partner Renault (RENA.PA). The plan, which faces stiff resistance within the Japanese carmaker, would see U.S. and British production phased out and a reduced output of next-generation batteries concentrated at its domestic plant, two alliance sources told Reuters...

In 2015, American consumers will finally be able to purchase fuel cell cars from Toyota and other manufacturers. Although touted as zero-emissions vehicles, most of the cars will run on hydrogen made from natural gas, a fossil fuel that contributes to global warming. Now scientists at Stanford University have developed a low-cost, emissions-free device that uses an ordinary AAA battery to produce hydrogen by water electrolysis. The battery sends an electric current through two electrodes that split liquid water into hydrogen and oxygen gas. Unlike other water splitters that use precious-metal catalysts, the electrodes in the Stanford device are made...

“Josie,” a friend of Ferguson Officer Darren Wilson, called into The Dana Loesch Radio Show today. Josie gave Officer Wilson’s side of the story. Here’s the transcript: “He pulled up ahead of them. And then he got a call-in that there was a strong-arm robbery. And, they gave a description. And, he’s looking at them and they got something in their hands and it looks like it could be what, you know those cigars or whatever. So he goes in reverse back to them. Tries to get out of his car. They slam his door shut violently. I think he...

The police officer who fatally shot 18-year-old Michael Brown did not know that he was a suspect in a convenience store robbery, Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson said Friday.Jackson said the officer, previously identified as 28-year-old Darren Wilson, initially stopped Brown and a friend ”because they were walking down the middle of the street blocking traffic.” Police earlier Friday released security footage they said showed Brown grabbing a box of cigars from a convenience store and then shoving the clerk away to leave.Daryl Parks, an attorney for the Brown family, confirmed that the security footage “appears to look like” the teenager,...

The Chevrolet Volt isn't changing much for the 2015 model year. According to specifications uncovered by Inside EVs, though, the new Volt's battery does have a slightly larger capacity. According to the spec sheet, this doesn't translate to increased range. Real world driving, though, might tell a different story. The 2015 Volt's battery storage is slightly higher than the outgoing model's, up from 16.5 kilowatt-hours to 17.1 kWh. According to GM's manager of electrification technology communications, Kevin Kelly, speaking to Green Car Reports, the increased capacity is "a late change done in the cell... just another continuous improvement to surprise...

Tesla said this week that its $35,000 entry, due in 2017 (or thereabouts), will be called the Model 3. One of the keys to making a cheaper Tesla is battery technology, as CEO Elon Musk pointed out to Auto Express earlier in the week. I chatted with John Voelcker, senior editor for High Gear Media, which publishes Green Car Reports, in the wake of the news. He offered insight into what impact a lower-priced Tesla might have. Q: Tesla has sold very pricey cars to date. How might a $35,000 Model 3 shake things up? John Voelcker: A list price...

NLPC has extensively documented howTesla Motors has taken advantage of market distortions to reap revenues – including government mandates, subsidies, and taxpayer support – not the least of which have been so-called “zero emission credits” from the state of California. But much of the revenue Tesla enjoyed last year – which often meant the difference between profit and loss – was credited based upon theoreticaltechnological capabilities and not ones actually put into practice. CEO Elon Musk has also relied on accounting gimmicks to enhance his bottom line over the last 18 months, during which a couple of quarterly earnings...

Two companies have developed a new type of electric vehicle battery said to offer a 1,000 mile range, with prices and whole-life costs comparable to a conventional petrol or diesel engine. The joint project between metals specialist Alcoa and green technology company Phinergy has produced a demonstrator featuring an aluminium-air battery, designed as a range extender for the lithium-ion units used in most electric vehicles. Already used in military applications, the battery uses a reaction with air and water over 50 aluminium plates, each of which can drive a car for up to 20 miles. The unit is designed so...

At the time of the conversion of Norma McCorvey (aka 'Roe' of 'Roe v. Wade'), I was living in Dallas. One prolife story that happened at the same time as the national story of Norma going from working in an abortion clinic and being pro-abortion to being prolife, there was the story of a girl/woman who did not want an abortion. The woman (or girl, as her identity was kept secret) had a broken arm, and did not want an abortion. Prolifers had to get a restraining order against the boyfriend so that this person would keep her baby. Perhaps...

Israeli company Phinergy claim to have produced a battery that can power a Citroen C1 for 3000km, and have demonstrated a 1800km drive with a more practical version, three times that available from commercial electric cars. Even more dramatically, the battery weighs just 100km, a fifth of the weight of those in the Tesla Model S. Metal-air batteries use the oxygen in the air around them, rather than storing it in liquid or solid chemicals. They can store far more energy than most competing technologies. Not needing to contain the oxygen can also cut the weight dramatically – Phinergy claim...

PORTLAND, Ore. — Say goodbye to your phone battery and charger. A new structural material could transform a mobile device's entire case into a hybrid super-capacitor/battery, making traditional batteries obsolete. Researchers from Vanderbilt University's Nanomaterials and Energy Devices Laboratory are now designing materials that combine the best aspects of super-capacitors and batteries into a single hybrid material suitable for making such device cases. While the material's energy density is currently less than that of a lithium-ion battery, it makes up for density by the much bigger volume of a case -- plus it eliminates the space needed for a battery....

(Phys.org) —Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new and unconventional battery chemistry aimed at producing batteries that last longer than previously thought possible. In a study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, ORNL researchers challenged a long-held assumption that a battery's three main components—the positive cathode, negative anode and ion-conducting electrolyte—can play only one role in the device. The electrolyte in the team's new battery design has dual functions: it serves not only as an ion conductor but also as a cathode supplement. This cooperative chemistry, enabled by the use...

Deputies arrested a 28-year-old woman April 18 after dispatchers got a frantic 911 call from a man who said he was in his SUV on northbound I-95, and his girlfriend was attacking his genitalia. His son, in the car with several other children, filmed at least part of the attack on his cell phone as deputies found the victim’s car on I-95. Deputies followed it as dispatchers told the victim to pull off on State Road 100, and then stopped the car at a Kangaroo gas station, according to an arrest report. Two deputies spoke separately to the man and...

Tesla reveals $5 billion Gigafactory, the world's largest battery plant By Justin Hyde 6 hours ago Motoramic   .View photo Tesla Motors No automaker has quite the momentum that Tesla Motors enjoys today. It sells every car it builds easily, with customers queuing around the globe. It's considered the best car for sale in America by several critics, and Wall Street has bought into Elon Musk's vision with a fervor rarely seen outside riverside baptisms. And yet everything Tesla stands for today and wants to accomplish in the future rides on a single stubborn, expensive piece of technology — the...

Tesla May Raise the Green Bar With New Battery Factory Eric Schaal | More Articles February 22, 2014 As is often the case with Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA), expectations for the electric car company’s battery factory are sky-high. Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk recently noted that the soon-to-launch factory would produce more lithium-ion batteries than all other sources on earth combined. In fact, word that the factory will be powered by sun and wind helps Tesla toward its stated goal of changing the sustainability quotient of the auto industry and thus U.S. culture as a whole.Musk’s appearances at town-hall-style meetings in Europe in...

What You Need to Know About Tesla Motors' Big Plans for the Chinese Auto Market By Tamara Walsh | More Articles | Save For Later February 13, 2014 | Comments (1) Tesla Motors (NASDAQ: TSLA  ) is hoping to unlock even more growth as it expands its operations overseas. The electric-car maker recently entered the world's largest auto market and plans to officially begin Model S deliveries in China as soon as next month. However, the real potential for Tesla comes as the automaker prepares to install its Supercharger network there.Value creation at its bestTesla's Supercharger network creates tremendous value for...