The sun's role in climate change may have been overplayed, according to a study indicating that the Earth could actually get slightly cooler, rather than warmer, as the activity of the 11-year solar cycle increases.

Until now it was assumed that as solar activity – indicated by the number of sunspots on the Sun's surface – increases, then so does the amount of solar radiation coming to the Earth to heat the planet.

However, a study based on satellite data of the Earth's atmosphere has shown there is a complicated interaction between the varying amounts of radiation from the Sun and the amount of ozone in the atmosphere.

The investigation, which ran from 2004 to 2007 when the solar activity cycle was decreasing, found there was a rise in ozone that may have resulted in a corresponding increase in temperatures, which would have been indirectly due to the Sun rather than to increases in man-made greenhouse gases, the scientists said.

http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/ozone-study-dims-suns-global-warming-role-2099712.html

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Gus: one of the scary thing about this is that this inocuous fact ACTUALLY increases the influence of CO2 in global warming... We could be in trouble sooner than we think. For starters October in Sydney is "cool" — that is to say that the average maximum temperature is one degree C lower than average, but the average minimum is about three degrees above.... Result? Around two degrees above average, yet the illusion is "cool"...

Russia may be associated more with long, dark winters than sun-drenched days. But that is not stopping private companies from tapping into a growing market for solar energy.

The jury is still out as to whether the sun can compete long term with traditional energy sources, but some industry players say solar energy has good potential — even though the government largely ignores renewable energy sources and Russia's economy is firmly based on the petrodollar.

Then there's the issue of a lack of sun.

“Russia has been considered as a northern country for a long time. … There was an opinion that it's better to use solar energy in countries where there's a lot of sun,” said Marat Zaks, chief executive of Solar Wind, a Krasnodar-based solar panel manufacturer.

“But the fact is that there's a lot of sun in Russia as well. Germany is the world's No. 1 solar energy consumer. But is Germany a sunny country?” he said.

Solar Wind produces panels mostly for export but wants to see the domestic market grow.

“If we get an order from a Russian customer, we try to complete it quickly to aid the market development in the country,” Zaks said.

A number of Russian private companies are creating joint ventures with Rusnano, the state technology corporation, to address local needs.

Solar Wind is starting a 4.8 billion ruble ($160 million) project, with Rusnano as a partner, in which it will make double-sided solar panels for domestic use. These are panels that collect solar energy from both sides. Zaks said there are only a few companies in the world making such panels.

The plant, which may start working at the end of this year or in the first quarter of 2011, will have an annual manufacturing capacity of 30 megawatts at the start, and will eventually ramp up to 120 megawatts per year.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/article/producing-kilowatts-from-more-than-oil/419002.html

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