Category: General

In 1812 the Mohs scale of mineral hardness was devised by the German mineralogist Frederich Mohs, who selected the ten minerals because they were common or readily available

Gases that keep the earth’s surface warmer than it would otherwise

Global forum for the wind energy sector. GWEC’s mission is to ensure that wind power establishes itself as one of the world’s leading energy sources, providing substantial environmental and economic benefits

The term Greenfield in the context of energy markets is described to define markets that are at their initial stages of development. A Greenfield market in the natural gas economy would thus be one with a limited number of gas suppliers, few consumers, not fully developed infrastructure (such as transmission and distribution systems), lack of experience, lack of a body of professionals, a dearth of relevant legislation, etc. At the other end of the spectrum we have a mature market place or a brownfield

All greenhouse gases have a Global Warming Potential (GWP). This value is used to compare the abilities of different greenhouse gases to trap heat in the atmosphere. GWPs are based on the heat-absorbing ability of each gas relative to that of carbon dioxide (CO2), as well as the decay rate of each gas (the amount removed from the atmosphere over a given number of years). GWPs can also be used to define the impact greenhouse gases will have on global warming over different time periods or time horizons. These are usually 20 years, 100 years and 500 years. For most greenhouse gases, the GWP declines as the time horizon increases. This is because the greenhouse gas is gradually removed from the atmosphere through natural removal mechanisms, and its influence on the greenhouse effect declines. By assigning a GWP value it allows policy makers to compare the impacts of emissions and reductions of different gases. For instance, methane is a significant contributor to the greenhouse effect and has a GWP of 21.

Generic term for any type of energy which is considered to have a lower environmental impact than commercially-produced energy

Theory that the temperature of the earth is being increased due to man-made, but also non-made made, emissions of GHGs (greenhouse gases).

The greenhouse effect is caused by molecules that absorb infrared radiation released from the Earth’s surface, trapping heat in the atmosphere.

It is, however, a long time scientific fact (not connected to man-made emissions) that greenhouse gases,  mainly CO2 but also methane, contribute to warming the Earth. Without the approximately 34°C temperature increase due to these gases, the Earth would be very cold instead of an average observed global temperature of ~15°C. Thus, the human contribution is merely changing the greenhouse gas warming from 34°C to say 36°C. But even a tiny extra 2°C will cause big problems.

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