For All Humankind...
Roger Atkins
LinkedIn TOP VOICE for EV ??, Event MC, ??? The Electric & Eclectic Podcast Show Host, ?? Documentary Maker, Board Advisor, Harmonica Player, Business Consultant & Investor -Founder Electric Vehicles Outlook Ltd
On this day (June 3rd) 50 years ago Ed White was riding spectacularly high in the sky just as his Flight Director says 'get back in'...
In doing so, he became the first American to perform a spacewalk. The walk took place during the Gemini 4 mission and lasted for about 23 minutes. In that time, White drifted weightlessly in Earth's orbit from high above the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii, to above the Gulf of Mexico, tethered by one cord.
NASA showed how a stupendous goal could be achieved, amazingly fast, if the will and the resources are there...
Professor Martin Rees, former head of the Royal Society and member of The Global Apollo group.
As reported in the UK's Guardian Newspaper yesterday The Global Apollo Programme (and see footer here) aims to make the cost of clean electricity lower than that from coal-fired power stations across the world within 10 years. It calls for ￡15bn a year of spending on research, development and demonstration of green energy and energy storage, the same funding in today’s money that the US Apollo programme spent in putting astronauts on the moon.
The plan is the brainchild of a group of eminent UK scientists, economists and businessmen including Sir David King, currently the UK’s climate change envoy, Lord Nicholas Stern, Lord Adair Turner and ex-BP chief Lord John Browne.The plan has been discussed by G7 energy ministers and is on the agenda for the G7 heads of state meeting in Germany on 7 June. King said he hoped the Apollo project would launch in November, just ahead of the crunch UN climate change summit in Paris which nations have set a deadline for a global deal.
I was delighted to read of the initiative as it echoed my own thoughts/analogy from a few months ago in The Sun, The Moon, and The Stars.
Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, Bruce McCandless, and others since have witnessed the majesty of it all with a view beyond compare. The lucky few recount their magic moment in the NASA video below...
Wether you witness the beauty of our 'pale blue dot' from the box seat or a more humble vista - it is mostly a beautiful place.
It is our 'place'.
It is the only place we may ever know.
It is a fragile place in regard to our tenure of it...
The ambition of The Global Apollo Group resonates strongly with much that is already underway - but puts more muscle, great minds, and money in and around it all. Perhaps they have timed its official launch to coincide with the 50 Year EVA celebration...
Prof John Schellnhuber, a climate scientist and former adviser to German chancellor Angela Merkel called the Apollo plan “truly ingenious” and said it “could well be a tipping point” in tackling climate change.
Let's hope so.
For all Humankind.
Useful Links: Apollo programme details
Website: www.electricvehiclesoutlook.com
LinkedIn TOP VOICE for EV ??, Event MC, ??? The Electric & Eclectic Podcast Show Host, ?? Documentary Maker, Board Advisor, Harmonica Player, Business Consultant & Investor -Founder Electric Vehicles Outlook Ltd
9 年Charles - I sympathise. You inhabit the Catch 22 world that stymies many innovators/innovations. You clearly know you need a well placed advocate to help you properly qualify and/or liberate the proposition. Whilst I do not have the technical rigour for the former I might be able to help you with the latter. If you are around on Monday afternoon we could have a Skype chat - sidatkins.
Lead Innovator - Hypuljet Ltd UK
9 年Hi Roger.I have been looking everywhere but its like any one of these election manifesto promises. Where is the substance. RBS have just held a Innovation quest and in their words they have been overwhelmed by the volume and the quality of the entries which they received. We have Innovate UK and what is it funding, ￡7.5 million equal funding to a multi-national. ￡3.5 m and ￡4.5 But the individual innovator simply cannot enter the ""Open"" competitions for funding. First hurdle an individual must link to three major companies one must be a manufacturer. When they do not respond to letters, Emails, Semafore or Smoke Signals, there is NO CHANCE. So I am very clear, what is needed is search out the innovation and fund anything which has a reasonable chance of success. There will be failures just like any entrepreneur, but the successful ones pay back into the kitty. As stated many times, I have a concept for a Hydrogen Pulse Jet Rotary Engine which could reduce the cost of a H2 EV to a similar price to the Volt or a BMW i3 It has taken since 2006-7 to get someone to look at the details and agree to build a prototype. Back ti cannot get funding because I am an individual innovator