earth

China clean tech's rare-earth advantage

In the race to build hybrid cars and wind turbines to feed growing demand for green technology, China has one clear advantage: it holds the world's largest reserves of rare-earth metals and dominates global production.

Wind turbines, made by No. 2 wind turbine maker Xinjiang Goldwind Science and Technology, and hybrid cars, being developed by Warren Buffett-backed Chinese automaker BYD, are among the biggest guzzlers of rare-earth minerals, which analysts say are facing a global supply crunch as demand swells.

This little-known class of 17 related elements is also used for a vast array of electronic devices ranging from … Read more

Sun eruptions spit plasma at Earth

Since Sunday, four eruptions on the sun have sent plasma into space on a crash course for Earth, scientists at NASA have found.

The eruptions, dubbed coronal mass ejections, started early Sunday, NASA said. When the plasma ejected from the eruptions hits the planet, the particles will come down toward the North Pole and South Pole. As they do so, they will hit nitrogen and oxygen, creating a colorful spectacle of green and red lights flying through the sky. According to scientists, the lights will be visible in northern U.S. states, on up to Canada.

The eruptions were caught … Read more

Town uses Google Earth to find unpermitted pools

I have a thing about busybodies. They never seem all that busy to me. Unless stooping to snoop into other people's lives can be called busy work.

Now I am not entirely sure that the town criers of Riverhead, Long Island, New York, can be classified as busybodies, but I still feel a little shiver at their reported behavior.

You see, according to MyFox New York, the town's official representatives are most fascinated with whether the wily and sometimes dubious residents of Long Island have installed swimming pools in their backyards without necessarily securing all the appropriate permits. … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1281: Microsoft gets serious about tablets. Again. (podcast)

Steve Ballmer admits Apple knows a thing or two about tablets. The U.K. government says it's sticking with IE 6 despite the entire world saying it's full of security holes. And the U.S. Congress, realizing it's out of money, wants to bring Internet gambling back to the U.S. so it can be taxed.

A Google Earth layer to scare you into submission

Links from Friday's episode of Loaded:

Apple releases an update to iPhone software in preparation for its press conference at 10 a.m. PDT Friday, which we will cover live here. Amazon is sued by Discovery Communications for alleged patent infringement on the Kindle. The latest Facebook scam claims to have horrific information about Coca-Cola. It doesn't. Don't click that. The upcoming version of Ford Sync can respond to over 10,000 commands. Mozilla releases Firefox Home on iPod Touch and iPhone to sync your desktop browsing with your mobile device. A new Google Earth layer may … Read more

U.K. layers climate shift on Google Earth

The U.K. government on Thursday launched a Google Earth layer that models what Earth might look like in the event of a significant worldwide rise in temperature.

Specifically, the interactive map visually demonstrates what could happen if carbon emissions are not curbed, and as a result, Earth's temperature rises four degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial worldwide climate average. As a plethora of scientists and politicians have repeatedly stated, an increase in things like drought and agricultural disruption as a result of drought, could lead to instability and violence in some parts of the world.

The free downloadable Four Degrees Celsius layer … Read more

Better GPS graphs, browser in new Google Earth

Google made a few tweaks to Google Earth on Monday, adding new GPS details and a way for the Web-oriented company to feel better about developing for the desktop.

Google Earth 5.2 is ready for the public, Google announced Monday. It's not a major release like the Google Earth 5.0 release from last year, but the free download for Windows, Mac, and Linux has a few interesting new features for the geographically obsessed.

Travelers were able to connect their GPS devices to Google Earth to view trip data with the 5.0 release, but they can now … Read more

Know your routes

Hybrid GeoTools' 3D Route Builder enhances Google Earth's built-in Path Editor with sophisticated GPS route planning capabilities, fine-grain, real-time control over 3D paths, and editing for location, altitude, and time stamp. It can use existing data or generate new GPX, KML, or Garmin TCX data from scratch.

This free program's interface combines typical Windows elements, including icon-based control and navigation toolbars, with a media player feel; in fact, it calls itself the "Media Player" of GPS playback in the animated ad banner that divides the interface's controls from the main display window. Clicking Embed GeoTool … Read more

Google the planet

Google Earth continues to set the mapping paradigm. Accessible enough for casual users, Google has added features that make it a necessity for those whose topographic desires are more serious. In addition to Earth cartography, you can also check out Google Ocean, historical Earth maps, and the surface of one of our closest neighbors, Mars.

The oceanic maps provide the capability to plunge to the floor of the sea, view exclusive content from the BBC and National Geographic, and explore shipwrecks like the Titanic in 3D. Exploring the Martian surface is limited to data provided from NASA, but that's … Read more

Rare-earth metal recycling needed to power green tech

Metal recycling is the sleeper growth industry in green tech.

Specialty metals, such as lithium and indium, and rare-earth elements, such as neodymium, are required for production of many green-technology products, including batteries for hybrid cars, LED lights, fuel cells, and solar panels.

But to ensure future supply of these resources, recycling rates needed to increase substantially, according to a report from the United Nations Environment Program. Preliminary findings were issued Thursday, with a full report planned for later this year.

The recycling rates for specialty metals are only about 1 percent, according to a U.N. panel on metals … Read more