George Bush travels to Sandia for start up of solar plant.

[NNadir]

On Monday August 8, President Bush signed the National Energy Bill at Sandia National Laboratories. Prior to signing the Bill, Sandia's President, Dr. Tom Hunter, took President Bush on a tour of the National Solar Thermal Test Facility (NSTTF). On the tour, President Bush and Dr. Hunter were accompanied by Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman, and New Mexico Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman.

The general theme of Dr. Hunter's message was that the energy security of the United States is increased by the development of a range of diverse technologies and by working in partnership with U. S. industry. He described the two methods for converting the sun's energy to electric power, photovoltaics and solar thermal. He then pointed out the 1200 Watt hybrid photovoltaic system made by Sacred Power and developed in cooperation with Sandia that was on display. Next he described the power tower and how CSP technologies, tower, trough, and dishes, provide for central, utility-scale power generation and how a power tower could also be used to generate hydrogen.

The “highlight” of the tour was the start up and operation of the six-dish system mini power plant of Stirling Energy Systems (SES). The President and Dr. Hunter were standing in the middle of the dishes as they tracked on sun and started producing electricity. Dr. Hunter described the operation of the systems emphasized the unique laboratory-industry relationship between DOE/SNL and SES that is making this happen. (During the start up of the dish field, Dr. Hunter recognized Chuck Andraka, Sandia's Chief Engineer on the SES Project, who was standing with the press core. The President invited Chuck to join them and shook his hand.)

In closing the tour, Dr. Hunter noted that the future of advanced energy technologies will take advantage of small, smart systems and showed the President an example of a fuel cell on a chip that was developed by Sandia.

This event highlighted renewable energy, and especially solar energy technologies. It involved the combined efforts of a large number of people at Sandia but, especially, the efforts of the staffs of the Energy, Infrastructure, and Knowledge Systems Center and the National Solar Thermal Test Facility. (Tom Mancini, 505.844.8643, [email protected] )

http://www.stirlingenergy.com/breaking_news.htm

[xiamiam]

1. interesting website...heres the link

http://www.sandia.gov/

[Dead_Parrot]

3. Solar power and nuclear weapons ?

Interesting combination...

[megatherium]

12. At the end of the Cold War, the people at Sandia decided they needed

to diversify their lab away from military work, if they wanted to remain in business.

[bahrbearian]

2. The chimp is no Al Gore....

[dweller]

4. too bad

any place he visits is pretty much cursed afterwards.

dp

[hatrack]

5. Let me guess - did he cut their funding later?

Wouldn't surprise me.

[Dogmudgeon]

6. Hey, wait!

I thought that the equation was:

Solar = Good Leftists Only
Nukular = Bad, Bad Rightists Only

What's with the Bush solar thing? He must be up to something!

--p!
People hate the Generator
But love to light up the night
(The Balancing Act, c. 1990)

[Dogmudgeon]

7. Here's the SERIOUS post

I don't care WHO advocates solar, nuclear, etc. -- We need to develop alternatives to petroleum, and we need to get to work NOW.

It's Monday morning. Have you rolled up your sleeves, stocked your pocket protectors with mechanical pencils, whipped out your K&E Slide Rules, poured yourself a cup of Celestial Karma brand Green Tea, and gotten to work on The Future yet?

--p!

[NNadir]

8. Actually Bush was there checking out opportunities for "solar war."

All solar technology can applied to solar war, as Archimedes demonstrated thousands of years ago.

At MIT, they have taken up the old military technology and are currently working on reproducing it:

http://web.mit.edu/2.009/www/lectures/10_ArchimedesResult.html

[Dogmudgeon]

9. Is that why the Pentagon's new plans for war with China ...

... require that we strike at night?

I understand it took Condi a good long time to explain to W how the sun knows to go down an hour later during Daylight Saving Time. With any luck, we won't have a Solar War until at least the next Republican president with brains takes office.

--p!

[NNadir]

10. The war plans with China depend a technology related to solar power

but not identical. As you note, they will be attacking at night.

Therefore they will be using moonbeams and moonshine.

Personally I have heard a great deal over the years that is related to the issue of moonbeams and moonshine.

[jpak]

11. ChimpCo's little dog and pony show fools no one

Every Earth Day he's out clearing brush or some such nonsense to prove his environmental "bona fides".

Environmentalist indeed...

BTW the all those facilities the Chimp visited existed during the Clinton adminisitration....

http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/solar.renewables/renewable.energy.annual/appi.html

and I would bet they were established under Clinton...

and I would further wager that ChimpCo and the GOP cut or attempted to cut funding for some of those programs as well...