Tag Archives: Nature & Environment

Ghost of Yōtei is a Tsushima sequel coming to PS5 in 2025

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The 2020 PlayStation hit Ghost of Tsushima is getting a sequel featuring a new protagonist, era and landscape. Ghost of Yōtei is heading to PlayStation 5 in 2025.

Ghost of Yōtei stars a new Ghost, Atsu, who's journeying through the lands at the base of Mount Yōtei in Ezo — modern-day Hokkaido — in 1603. This means the sequel is set 300 years after the events of Tsushima, which focused on the Mongol invasion of that region. In 1603, Yōtei was not under Japanese rule, and the debut trailer shows vast, untouched grasslands, snowy forests and sun-drenched ridges dotted with wildflowers, a strong breeze blowing through each scene. There's a distinct cowboy twang to the music in the trailer, particularly as Atsu interacts with wild horses. She also meets a wolf, which is neat.

On the PlayStation Blog, Sucker Punch noted that Yōtei wasn't home to organized samurai clans like those in Tsushima, and said this formed the basis of the sequel's new, original story.

This is the first game that Sucker Punch has built from the ground-up for PS5.

"We have massive sightlines that let you look far across the environment, whole new skies featuring twinkling stars and auroras, even more believable movement from wind on grass and vegetation, and more improvements we’ll share in the future," Sucker Punch communications manager Andrew Goldfarb said. "Our new setting also gives us the opportunity to introduce new mechanics, gameplay improvements, and even new weapons."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/ghost-of-yotei-is-a-tsushima-sequel-coming-to-ps5-in-2025-231306124.html?src=rss

GM electric vehicles can finally recharge at Tesla Supercharger stations

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Starting today, General Motors is starting to sell approved North American Charging Standard (NACS) DC adapters for its electric vehicles. GM originally announced it would support Tesla’s NACS connector 15 months ago, but it’s taken them until today to get adapters out to the market. Models from Chevrolet, Cadillac and GMC will all be able to use this new adapter.

Previously, GM electric vehicles weren’t compatible with Tesla Superchargers, as they were outfitted with a different proprietary charging port. Those who own these EVs can purchase an adapter for $225 using your vehicle brand’s mobile app. The app can also help owners locate the closest Supercharger station.

These NACS DC adapters will first be available to US customers, while Canadian EV owners will have to wait until later this year. Moving forward, GM vehicles will now come with NACS DC adapters, meaning future owners won’t have to fork $225 over for the ability to recharge. To ensure all GM EV owners can power up their vehicles, the company is working with multiple supplies to provide enough adapters for all.

Earlier this year, Ford EV owners started being able to charge their vehicles at Tesla’s Superchargers. Subaru, Hyundai and basically every other major automaker in the US also made similar announcements last year. That GM took well over a year to release adapters could be due to Tesla firing its entire Supercharger team in April, according to a report from Forbes.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/gm-electric-vehicles-can-finally-recharge-at-tesla-supercharger-stations-135228213.html?src=rss

Tesla Semi fire required 50,000 gallons of water to extinguish

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California firefighters needed to spray 50,000 gallons of water to extinguish a roadside Tesla Semi fire, the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced in a preliminary report. Crews also used an aircraft to drop fire retardent in the "immediate area as a precautionary measure," according to the agency.

The crash happened at 3:13 AM on August 19 on the I80 freeway east of Sacramento. The tractor-trailer departed the roadway while navigating a curve, struck a traffic delineator and eventually hit a tree. The driver was uninjured but taken to hospital as a precaution.

Tesla Semi fire required 50,000 gallons of water to extinguish
California Highway Patrol

The Tesla Semi's large 900kWh battery caught fire and reached a temperature of 1,000 degrees F while spewing toxic fumes. It continued to burn into the late afternoon as firefighters dowsed it with water to cool it down (Tesla sent a technical expert to assess high-voltage hazards and fire safety). It wasn't until 7:20 PM (over 16 hours after the crash) that the freeway was reopened. 

All of that caught the attention of the NTSB, which sent a team of investigators, mainly to examine the fire risks posed by large lithium-ion battery packs. The agency — which can only make safety recommendations and has no enforcement authority — said that "all aspects of the crash remain under investigation while the NTSB determines the probable cause." 

Given the long road shutdown time, dangerously hot fire and toxic fumes, the accident is likely to provoke a lot of discussion in and out of government. The NTSB concluded in 2021 that battery fires pose a risk to emergency responders and that manufacturers' guidelines around such fires were inadequate. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/tesla-semi-fire-required-50000-gallons-of-water-to-extinguish-120006477.html?src=rss

Self-storage rooftops will become a nationwide 100MW+ solar farm

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Electrek reports that a solar energy company is renting 8.5 million square feet of roof space from the National Storage Affiliates Trust’s (NSA) buildings for its newest solar panel project.

The commercial and community solar developer Solar Landscape’s new rooftop solar panel grid on the NSA’s 1,052 self-storage facilities and properties across 42 states and Puerto Rico are expected to produce at least 100 megawatts of solar capacity. The NSA, headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado, is one of the nation’s largest self-storage operators with brands like iStorage, Move It, Northwest and SecurCare.

These solar energy panels won’t just generate power for the NSA’s facilities. The panels will also provide clean power to nearby businesses and homes for a discounted price.

One of the challenges of implementing solar energy is finding enough space for the solar panels. These panels can take up a lot of space, like the Noor Abu Dhabi solar plant that set a world record in 2019 with 3.2 million solar panels taking up over 3 square miles of space.

Solar Landscape and the NSA may have found an interesting solution to solar panel projects’ space problem. If this partnership is successful, it could inspire similar deals for other communities looking to benefit from solar power technology.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/self-storage-rooftops-will-become-a-nationwide-100mw-solar-farm-223004138.html?src=rss

China claims to have already reached its 2030 clean energy goal

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In some good news for the environment, China has reached a clean energy goal six years sooner than expected. In 2020, President Xi Jinping set a goal to have at least 1,200 gigawatts of clean energy sources by 2030. In a new statement, China's National Energy Administration claims the country has reached 1,206 gigawatts, thanks to 25 gigawatts of turbines and panels added last month, Bloomberg reports.

This milestone is critical for China, the world's biggest polluter, which produces about 12.7 metric tons of emissions produced annually as of 2023, The New York Times reports. For context, the United States is second with 5.9 billion tons. However, China is spending more on clean energy than every other country, but it still has a long way to go. So far, solar and wind have generated 14 percent of the country's energy in 2024.

China is working to expand this number with a range of projects that include renewable energy. In June, it was announced that state-owned China Three Gorges Renewables Group will invest 80 billion yuan ($11 billion) in a base using solar, wind and coal to generate electricity. The plant will be built in Inner Mongolia and get 135 gigawatts of the 435 gigawatts China has devoted to desert projects by 2030. We'll have to see how much of a negative offset the coal aspect will cause as the plan progresses.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/china-claims-to-have-already-reached-its-2030-clean-energy-goal-122012187.html?src=rss

Oxford scientists’ new light-absorbing material can turn everyday objects into solar panels

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Oxford University scientists may have solved one of the greatest hindrances of expanding access to solar energy. Scientists from the university’s physics department have created an ultra-thin layer of material that can be applied to the exterior of objects with sunlight access in place of bulky silicon-based solar panels.

The ultra-thin and flexible film is made by stacking layers of light-absorbing layers of perovskite that are just over one micron thick. The new materials are also 150 times thinner than a traditional silicon wafer and can produce 5 percent more energy efficiency than traditional, single-layer silicon photovoltaics, according to a statement released by Oxford University.

Dr. Shauifeng Hu, a postdoctoral fellow at Oxford’s physics department, says he believes “this approach could enable the photovoltaic devices to achieve far greater efficiencies, exceeding 45 percent.”

This new approach to solar energy technology could also reduce the cost of solar energy. Due to their thinness and flexibility, they can be applied to almost any surface. This reduces the cost of construction and installation and could increase the number of solar energy farms producing more sustainable energy.

This technology, however, is still in the research stage and the university doesn’t mention the long-term stability of the newly designed perovskite panels. Going from 6 to 27 percent solar energy efficiency in five years is an impressive feat but stability has always been limited compared to photovoltaic technology, according to the US Department of Energy. A 2016 study in the science journal Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells also noted that perovskite can provide “efficient, low-cost energy generation” but it also has “poor stability” due its sensitivity to moisture.

Solar energy has also become a cheaper power option just over the last decade. The cost of solar photovoltaic technology has dropped by 90 percent in the last 10 years, according to the Global Change Data Lab.

New solar energy farms are popping up all over the world. The US Department of Energy announced earlier this month its turning an 8,000-acre piece of land that once housed parts of the nuclear weapons program known as the Manhattan Project into a solar farm. Last month, Google invested in a Taiwanese solar company to build a 1 gigawatt pipeline in the region.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/oxford-scientists-new-light-absorbing-material-can-turn-everyday-objects-into-solar-panels-200410760.html?src=rss

ChargePoint’s new adapter claims to work with all EVs, regardless of make or model

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ChargePoint has released a new EV connector designed to work with "any" EV, regardless of its charging architecture without requiring drivers to have a specialized adapter. In a press release announcing the development, ChargePoint said Omni Port is "designed to support vehicles that are already on the road as well as EVs coming to market."

ChargePoint said it will begin rolling out Omni Port to select new models of its AC and DC charging stations at no cost. The technology can also be retrofitted into existing ChargePoint stations at an unspecified, "nominal" cost. To use Omni Port, customers can enter their vehicle model into the ChargePoint app or pick the appropriate connector from the charging station screen if they don't use the app.

The United States doesn't have a formal standard for electric vehicle charging, but informally, Tesla's North American Charging Standard (NACS) has become the default for many companies on the manufacturing side. ChargePoint began rolling out support for the NACS connector in 2023.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/chargepoints-new-adapter-claims-to-work-with-all-evs-regardless-of-make-or-model-182107079.html?src=rss

New York’s flood warning drones screamed at residents in ‘incomprehensible’ Spanish

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New York City has implemented a new drone warning system to alert residents to hazardous weather conditions. Unfortunately, the drones need to work on their Spanish.

A resident spotted one of the new drones issuing a flood warning on Wednesday to NYC neighborhoods in English and Spanish, but the Spanish words that came out of the drones were “incomprehensible,” according to a resident who shared a video on X.

The drones had no problem issuing a weather warning in English as it delivered the news about an incoming batch of heavy rainfall in a clear and distinguishable tone. The Spanish message, however, sounded like a robot speaking the language for the first time.

Zach Iscol, the commissioner of NYC’s emergency management department, acknowledged the mistake on X in a reply.

“I’m very proud of the work our team has done preparing for this storm, but this shouldn’t have happened and we’re going to make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Iscol wrote in a reply.

The New York Times published a story on Tuesday about the new emergency alert drone system. The city sent the drones out to communities around 1 p.m. to inform residents about the heavy rainfall headed their way. Iscol told the newspaper that NYC Mayor Eric Adams came up with the idea to use drones as a new part of its warning system. Adams has instituted similar, tech-heavy initiatives during his term such as a security robot that patrolled the Times Square subway station, and the controversial “Spot Robot,” also known as the “Digidog,” for the New York Police Department to use during hazardous situations like hostage standoffs.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/new-yorks-flood-warning-drones-screamed-at-residents-in-incomprehensible-spanish-194507725.html?src=rss

A Manhattan Project nuclear weapons site is being turned into a giant solar farm

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The US Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced plans to turn land that previously housed aspects of the Manhattan Project into a 1 GW solar farm. For the uninitiated, the Manhattan Project was a top-secret and successful effort to develop nuclear weapons during the 1940s.

This particular renovation is being conducted at the former home of the Hanford nuclear testing facility, otherwise known as Site W, which is in Washington state. This site housed the world’s first full-scale plutonium production reactor. Plutonium made at this location was used in the very first atomic bomb and the Fat Man bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.

The location certainly is intriguing, but so is the transformation project. This 580-square mile section of semi-arid desert could end up housing the largest solar project in the country, if built to the announced capacity. This record currently belongs to the Edwards Sanborn Solar and Energy Storage project in California, which generates 875 megawatts of solar power.

The DOE has teamed up with Hecate Energy to repurpose the 8,000-acre site. This is part of the Biden-Harris administration’s Cleanup to Clean Energy initiative that launched last year. This program is tasked with repurposing DOE-owned land for clean energy generation. This program has already added around 90 GW of solar capacity to the grid, which is enough to power 13 million homes.

This isn’t quite a done deal yet. The DOE and Hecate Energy still have to negotiate for a realty agreement and the government could cancel these negotiations at any time.

This is good news, but we still have some catching up to do with regard to Europe. The US produces around 5.6 percent of its energy via solar, but the EU recently shot up to 9.1 percent. However, trends are moving upward in both regions.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-manhattan-project-nuclear-weapons-site-is-being-turned-into-a-giant-solar-farm-173047830.html?src=rss

A Manhattan Project nuclear weapons site is being turned into a giant solar farm

Posted on by

The US Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced plans to turn land that previously housed aspects of the Manhattan Project into a 1 GW solar farm. For the uninitiated, the Manhattan Project was a top-secret and successful effort to develop nuclear weapons during the 1940s.

This particular renovation is being conducted at the former home of the Hanford nuclear testing facility, otherwise known as Site W, which is in Washington state. This site housed the world’s first full-scale plutonium production reactor. Plutonium made at this location was used in the very first atomic bomb and the Fat Man bomb that was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.

The location certainly is intriguing, but so is the transformation project. This 580-square mile section of semi-arid desert could end up housing the largest solar project in the country, if built to the announced capacity. This record currently belongs to the Edwards Sanborn Solar and Energy Storage project in California, which generates 875 megawatts of solar power.

The DOE has teamed up with Hecate Energy to repurpose the 8,000-acre site. This is part of the Biden-Harris administration’s Cleanup to Clean Energy initiative that launched last year. This program is tasked with repurposing DOE-owned land for clean energy generation. This program has already added around 90 GW of solar capacity to the grid, which is enough to power 13 million homes.

This isn’t quite a done deal yet. The DOE and Hecate Energy still have to negotiate for a realty agreement and the government could cancel these negotiations at any time.

This is good news, but we still have some catching up to do with regard to Europe. The US produces around 5.6 percent of its energy via solar, but the EU recently shot up to 9.1 percent. However, trends are moving upward in both regions.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/a-manhattan-project-nuclear-weapons-site-is-being-turned-into-a-giant-solar-farm-173047830.html?src=rss