plant

Japan has attempted to power up the world’s largest nuclear power plant. It only lasted a few hours

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The nuclear debate, which Japan thought closed, returns to the scene. The recent authorization to reactivate Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, the largest atomic plant in the world, has set off alarms: citizen distrust, the shadow of Fukushima and doubts have surfaced about whether TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Company) is the right company to lead the country’s new energy stage. Fifteen years of waiting for a reboot that didn’t even last a day. In Niigata, reactor number 6 went from complete silence to emergency shutdown in less than 24 hours. The failure, located in critical safety systems, has turned the great revival energetic of Japan in a lesson in technical fragility. A slow giant. Kashiwazaki-Kariwa had not produced a single kilowatt since 2012. That closure was not an isolated event, but the shock wave of Fukushima in 2011, which put all reactors of similar design in the spotlight. But for TEPCO, this complex of seven units and more than 8,000 MW is much more than energy: it is its financial lifeline. According to Japan Forward estimatesthe electricity company needs these reactors to inject some 100,000 million yen annually into its coffers, essential oxygen to pay the endless bill for the dismantling of Fukushima Daiichi. The Japanese Government, under the command of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, has positioned this reopening as a strategic pillar. The objective is ambitious, in saying that nuclear energy represent 20% of the energy mix by 2040. This energy is needed to power new AI data centers and semiconductor factories, thus reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels, made more expensive by the fall of the yen and current geopolitics. Chronicle of a fleeting reboot. The reactivation process of reactor No. 6 was marked by setbacks even before it began. The restart, initially scheduled for Tuesday, January 20, had to be postponed one day after it was detected that an alarm designed to warn of the accidental removal of control rods did not work during the tests, as reported by The Japan Times. After correcting this error, operations formally began on Wednesday at 7:02 pm. At 8:28 pm, the reactor reached the “critical state” (sustained nuclear fission). However, the celebration in TEPCO’s control rooms – where staff tensely monitored screens – was short-lived. At 12:28 a.m. Thursday, just 16 hours after the start, an alarm sounded again. This time it indicated a failure in the engine control panel that operates one of the reactor control rods (the devices that regulate or stop the nuclear reaction). TEPCO attempted to replace electrical components and inverters, but the anomaly persisted. Given the uncertainty, the company announced a “planned temporary shutdown” to reinsert the control rods and stop the fission, a process that concluded Friday morning. “We do not assume that the investigation will be resolved in one or two days; at this time we cannot say how many days it will take,” admitted Takeyuki Inagaki, director of the plant, at a press conference. Security under suspicion. Although TEPCO maintains that the reactor remains under control and without leaks to the outside, the incident has served to poke into a wound that was never closed. It is not just the present that is worrying, but a tarnished record: just five years ago, the Financial Times I already put the focus on the plant after a security scandal where an employee circumvented access controls using a foreign identification, revealing the fragility of its surveillance systems. However, distrust does not only fall on TEPCO. The Japanese nuclear sector is experiencing a systemic credibility crisis. Earlier this month, Chubu Electric admitted to manipulating seismic data to minimize the impact of potential earthquakes at its Hamaoka plant, leading the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NRA) to describe the act as “scandalous” and to suspend its security review after a decade of paperwork. A divided society in Niigata. Outside the plant and at TEPCO headquarters, protesters like Yumiko Abe, 73, express their indignation: “Electricity is for Tokyo, but we in Kashiwazaki run the risk. It doesn’t make sense.” The figures support this discomfort. According to surveys cited by South China Morning Postabout 60% of Niigata residents oppose the restart. Furthermore, 70% of citizens fear that TEPCO will not be able to manage an emergency based on its history. On the other hand, prominent seismologists warn in the Financial Times that the plant is located near an area of ​​very high seismic risk where a large earthquake could cause billions of dollars in damage. The future of the atom in Japan. The path to full operation of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is once again up in the air. While TEPCO makes cost cuts of 3.1 trillion yen To fund the decommissioning of Fukushima, the NRA has promised strict on-site inspections to verify corrective actions following this latest failure. Experts like Dr. Florentine Koppenborg suggest that this “nuclear renaissance” It could be just a “drop in the ocean” as security costs have skyrocketed and public trust remains at rock bottom. Japan is at an energy crossroads: the urgency to decarbonize and feed its technology industry collides head-on with the memory of a disaster that, 15 years later, is still very present. The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa giant has shown that, in nuclear energy, the distance between strategic success and technical failure is measured in the sound of a single alarm. Image | IAEA Imagebank Xataka | Here is news that will surely reassure you: Europe’s largest nuclear power plant is running on diesel generators

Working in a nuclear power plant is not the best way to avoid cancer. Now it turns out that its waste also serves to cure it

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If there is a terrifying and mainstream disease, it is cancer: after all, according to the WHOone in five people will develop it at some point in their life. Although in some cases the risk factors vary depending on the type of cancer, working in a nuclear power plant poses some riskas long as there is greater exposure to ionizing radiation, even if there are no accidents or more intense exposure through maintenance work. Paradoxically, the activity of nuclear power plants, which can cause cancer, also serves to generate the basis of the medicine to cure it. And we are not talking about a potentially distant study, but rather something that can already be materialized. In fact, the United Kingdom has already taken a step forward to transform some of its radioactive waste into anti-cancer medication. The world’s first lead-212 radiopharmaceutical ecosystem. Because in the UK they have closed an agreement between the public body Nuclear Decommissioning Authority and the biotechnology company Bicycle Therapeutics for which the latter will have 400 tons of reprocessed uranium to extract the valuable (for the medical industry) lead – 212 for 15 years. Behind Bicycle is Sir Greg Winter, co-founder of the company and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2018. This will provide them with the infrastructure to create the world’s first end-to-end lead-212 radiopharmaceutical ecosystem, from discovery to commercial supply. So explains it Mike Hannay, Chief Product and Supply Chain Officer at Bicycle Therapeutics. The benefits of lead – 212. Lead – 212 is an isotope used in therapeutic contexts thanks to its particular decay properties, so that it emits both alpha and beta particles. While the former provide high-energy, short-range cytotoxicity, the latter have a more extended range, targeting micro-metastasis. In a simplified way, this medically applicable isotope is essential for precision treatments against tumors resistant to other therapies. Thus, it carries radiation and acts directly on cancer cells to destroy tumors, minimizing the damage to the surrounding healthy tissue. This type of technique offers promising results in prostate cancers and neuroendocrine tumors of organs such as the intestine or pancreas. Extracting lead-212 is an arduous task. Converting the waste from nuclear power plants into cancer treatments seems like a fantastic idea for two reasons: because of the cure for cancer itself and the problem of dealing with radioactive waste, one of the great challenges faced by these energy industries, which have also explored other avenues such as take advantage of the remaining energy. But getting here has not been easy: the extraction process of this isotope has been carried out by the United Kingdom National Nuclear Laboratory (UKNNL) with a complex chemical process that requires the isolation of scandalously small quantities of the precursor material from the used nuclear fuel. Thus, first the Thorium-228 is extracted from the reprocessed uranium to later process it into Radium-224. It is then loaded into a lead-212 generator that has been custom-made for Bicycle Therapeutics’ needs by US company SpectronRx. This is a continuous regeneration, producing enough lead-212 to deliver tens of thousands of doses of precision therapy per year. The laboratory explains that the critical part is in the beginning: “The initial precursor material extracted is comparable to finding a single drop of water in an Olympic swimming pool.” From that minute amount, an even smaller fraction of lead-212 is separated. First discover the universe, then cure cancer. In addition to this unexpected use of nuclear power plant waste, in recent weeks a group of researchers from the University of York have evidenced in a study that the intense radiation captured in the beam absorbers of particle accelerators could be reused to produce materials used in cancer therapies. Those particle accelerators They are used, among other things, in experiments to discover the matter of which the universe is composed. In Xataka | The rarest element on Earth aims to cure cancer. And Europe is already accelerating its production In Xataka | We have been believing that bacteria are a weapon against tumors for 150 years. And finally we have discovered how Cover | Jakub Zerdzicki and Ivan S

We have a problem with cardboard recycling. In the United Kingdom they believe that the solution is to use it in a power plant

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Every day, millions of cardboard boxes leave our homes heading to the blue container. They are the last link in an accelerated consumption cycle in online commerce. However, this material, so everyday that we don’t even look at it twice, could be on the verge of an unexpected second life: becoming fuel to generate electricity on a large scale. A residue that enters the energy map. A team of engineers from Nottingham University has shown for the first time that used cardboard can be used as an effective source of biomass in power plants. The investigation, published in the journal Biomass and Bioenergycompares cardboard with a common reference for industrial biomass: eucalyptus. The engineers didn’t just watch the cardboard burn. They crushed it, studied its shape, broke down its chemistry and analyzed how it reacted to heat and what type of carbon it left behind. They even developed their own method—based on thermogravimetric analysis—to measure exactly how much calcium carbonate each sample contains. This component, common in printed cardboard, gives rigidity to the material but also conditions its behavior when burning. Thanks to this procedure, they can predict which type of cardboard will work well in an industrial boiler and which could cause problems. The science behind cardboard that burns “better.” The study did not stop at theories. He tested the combustion of cardboard in two types of systems equivalent to those used in power plants: Drop Tube Furnace: Simulates the rapid combustion of pulverized biomass.Here, the researchers observed that cardboard particles develop chars (the carbonaceous remains that remain after the first combustion phase) highly reactive, with a predominance of fine and porous structures that favor a burnout accelerated. Muffle Furnace: Simulates fluidized bed or grate systems. Even with longer residence times, the paperboard maintained its excellent combustion profile. In addition, the size and shape of the particles were characterized through an analysis with more than one million particles per sample; The tendency of cardboard to form “spongy aggregates” during grinding was observed—a challenge for its industrial handling—and characteristics such as sphericity and aspect ratio were correlated, something that could improve future combustion models. As the academic study explains, this detailed analysis allows predicting combustion efficiency and designing industrial strategies to integrate cardboard into the fuel flow. The result was very favorable. Thanks to this experiment, the engineers managed to demonstrate that cardboard has less carbon (38%) than eucalyptus (46.7%) and its calorific value is also lower (15.9–16.5 MJ/kg versus 21 MJ/kg). However, its chars are finer, porous and reactive, which accelerates combustion; In addition, it contains much more ash (8.9–10.6%, compared to 0.6% for eucalyptus), a critical aspect for boilers. What remains to be resolved? Although the technical potential is evident, the study makes it clear that cardboard is not ready to enter the boilers of a power plant tomorrow. There are three fundamental challenges that must be addressed: Management and processing problems. When ground, cardboard does not behave like wood: it forms spongy lumps of very low density that make internal transport difficult, complicate the continuous feeding of boilers and can increase the risk of blockages and accumulations. The study warns that it will be essential to adapt the grinding and feeding systems to guarantee a stable and safe flow. The behavior of calcium. Cardboard contains very high levels of CaCO₃, especially when printed. This calcium can behave in different ways depending on the temperature and type of boiler. In certain cases it raises the fusion temperature of the ashes – which is positive -; In others it can favor the formation of slag or alter the quality of the fuel. The study recommends analyzing the behavior of cardboard according to the type of plant, because not all technologies tolerate these variations in the same way. Large-scale industrial validation. Laboratory tests are promising, but the decisive step is missing: testing the cardboard in real operating conditions. According to the researchers, the industry will have to carry out tests on different technologies in boilers, evaluate emissions, study the accumulation and composition of ash and check their compatibility with existing biomass mixtures. Only then can it be determined whether the cardboard can be safely and stably integrated into the mix of biomass. An everyday material with an unexpected future. Cardboard protects pizzas, televisions, books and appliances. We recycle it without thinking too much about it. But this research from Nottingham suggests that this everyday waste could become another piece of the energy transition, helping to diversify fuels and take advantage of an abundant and local resource. Today we see it as garbage. Tomorrow it could help produce electricity. The spark has already been lit: now we need to know if the industry wants – and can – convert it into real energy. Image | Unsplash and Geograph Xataka | Selling smoke is now a business in Soria: it purifies it and sells it as CO2 to make soft drinks

In 2011 Japan closed the largest nuclear power plant on the planet. Now he has decided to reopen it in the midst of the energy debate

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The nuclear debate, which Japan thought closed, returns to the scene. The authorization of the governor of Niigata to reactivate Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, the largest atomic plant in the world, has set off alarms: citizen distrust, the shadow of Fukushima and doubts about whether TEPCO is the right company to lead the country’s new energy stage are emerging. A new nuclear revival? The Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant, managed by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), has not produced a single kilowatt since 2012. The closure was a direct consequence of the 2011 tsunami and the three meltdowns from Fukushima Daiichia blow that left reactors with similar designs under suspicion. That technical coincidence was enough to keep its seven reactors on hold for more than ten years, despite the fact that the plant was essential for the electricity supply of northeastern Japan. According to Japan TimesHideyo Hanazumi has authorized a step-by-step reactivation that will start with reactor 6—one of the most recent and powerful—and that, later, will also include reactor 7. Altogether, the complex exceeds 8,000 MW of capacity, a figure that not only imposes: it maintains it as the largest nuclear facility on the planet. A significant change for the Japanese country. Kashiwazaki-Kariwa has gone from a technical project to a strategic move. As reported by the Financial TimesTokyo trusts that its reactivation will contribute to lowering the electricity bill and ensuring energy sources with fewer emissions, at a time complicated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the fall of the yen, which makes fossil fuel imports more expensive. Japan, which before Fukushima generated almost 30% of its electricity with atomic plants, fell to practically zero after the disaster. Since then 14 reactors have reopened and others await local or regulatory approvals. The government aims for nuclear energy to once again represent 20% of the mix in 2040. In addition, TEPCO would improve its annual accounts by around 100 billion yen thanks to the restart, according to Japan Forwardat a time when it continues to face enormous costs for the dismantling of Fukushima Daiichi. The reactivation process. The restart will begin with unit 6, which already has fuel loaded and will begin commercial operations before March of next year. To move forward, TEPCO must respond to the Government’s demands, which include updating all security systems and improving emergency evacuation plans. The process has not been easy. As detailed by Japan Timesthe plant passed safety reviews in 2017, but then suffered a veto from the Nuclear Regulatory Authority due to deficiencies in anti-terrorist measures, lifted in 2023. In addition, TEPCO had to incorporate biometric controls and correct security flaws after new internal incidents. Is there controversy? Yes, and a lot. According to a survey cited by the BBC50% of Niigata residents support the revival, while 47% oppose it. However, almost 70% express their concern because the person operating the plant is the same company that caused the accident. From Japan Times He adds that the rejection intensifies in some of the towns located within 30 kilometers of the plant, where the majority fear a new disaster or distrust the company. Another source of discomfort, also pointed out by this medium, is that the electricity generated is not used in Niigata, but in the Tokyo region. The political dimension is equally tense. Hanazumi, aware of the sensitivity of her decision, has announced that he will submit his continuity as governor to the vote of the prefectural assembly, the only body that can remove him. But there is something else at play. The reopening of Kashiwazaki-Kariwa is seen as a pillar to ensure the country’s energy security and avoid possible power outages in Tokyo. It would also allow reducing electricity rates that have increased notably since 2011. At the same time, Japan is not only restarting reactors: it is also is planning the construction of new plants with fourth generation reactors, which would mark a new chapter in the country’s energy policy. More than a return to the atom. The country that one day vowed not to depend on atomic energy again has ended up returning to it, driven by necessity, geopolitics and the urgency to decarbonize. It remains to be seen if this decision will also ignite the confidence of a citizenry that still carries the memory of Fukushima or if, on the contrary, the return to the atom will deepen a division that has been open for more than a decade. Although the governor’s approval is the decisive step, there are still procedures: the prefectural assembly must debate and vote on the decision in December, and the Japanese nuclear regulator must complete the formal procedures for reactivation. Image | IAEA Imagebank Xataka | In 2011, Japan promised itself not to bet on nuclear energy again. Until he met reality

The largest nuclear power plant in Europe has been connected to diesel generators for a month. It’s as encouraging as it sounds.

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Europe is once again walking a nuclear tightrope. After more than three years of war, the largest atomic plant on the continent —the Ukrainian Zaporizhia plant— has gone from being an industrial symbol to becoming at a point of friction capable of triggering an emergency of continental reach. In parallel, other plants in the country operate at reduced power after attacks on the electrical grid. The situation is so unstable that the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, recently traveled to Kaliningrad, Russia, for emergency talks with the head of Rosatom, Alexey Likhachev, according to the Anadolu agency. It is a gesture that reflects the extent to which the risk is real. An attack that left two centers at minimum. According to a statement from the IAEAa military attack during the night of November 7 damaged an electrical substation critical to nuclear security. This incident left the Khmelnitsky and Rivne plants disconnected from one of their two 750 kilovolt lines and forced the electricity operator to order a power reduction in several of its reactors. Ten days later, one of the lines was still out of service and three reactors continued to operate at limited power. The agency emphasizes that these substations are essential nodes of the network: they allow the voltage levels that feed the security and cooling systems to be transformed and maintained. Without them, plants cannot guarantee safe operation. One month depending on diesel generators. The situation in Zaporizhzhia is even more critical. According to an opinion column by Najmedin Meshkati, professor of engineering and international relations published in the Financial Timesthe plant spent a full month without outside power after its two main lines were cut. During that time it survived solely on diesel generators, a resource that the industry considers strictly temporary: they are designed to run for around 24 hours, not for weeks. Technicians were only able to repair the lines under the protection of localized ceasefires negotiated by the IAEA, according to NucNet. Even so, one of the two restored lines was disconnected again on November 14 due to the activation of a protection system. Grossi summed it up like this: “The electrical situation at the plant remains extremely fragile.” The condition for a shut down reactor to remain safe. Although Zaporizhzhia’s six reactors have been on cold shutdown for more than three years, the plant requires a constant three to four megawatts to maintain cooling pumps and other essential systems, according to Meshkati. The professor emphasizes that even huge emergency batteries require external electricity to stay charged. It is a vicious circle: without the electrical grid, batteries are used, but without external electricity, these batteries cannot be recharged and, without both, the cooling systems fail. And without cooling the risk of nuclear fuel melting or overheating increases. The University of Southern California professor warns that this scenario reproduces the conditions that transformed Fukushima into a global disaster: “What turned an earthquake into a catastrophe was the total failure of the electrical system.” And he adds that, unlike 2011 in Japan, this time the risk comes from deliberate human action. A network reduced to its minimum expression. Before the war, according to the Kyiv Independentthe Zaporizhia plant was connected through ten power lines. Today it only has one or two operations and has lost all connection ten times since the beginning of the invasion. The IAEA itself has described the situation power plant as “extremely precarious” and “clearly not sustainable” when it depends for long periods on diesel generators. Short and medium term risks. The notices in the last report on Ukraine by the IAEA point in the same direction: the main danger is not a Chernobyl-type explosion, but a prolonged cooling failure. This scenario could cause overheating of the reactors in cold shutdown, damage to the spent fuel pools and a possible localized or regional radioactive release, with the consequent need to create an exclusion zone in the heart of agricultural Europe. For its part, according to Meshkatiadds two other relevant elements. On the one hand, it points out that a serious accident will exceed the economic impact of Fukushima, estimated at about $500 billion. An incident of that magnitude would affect agriculture, transport, supply chains and the European insurance market. On the other hand, he maintains that if Russia manages to consolidate the precedent that an occupying army can take control of a nuclear power plant and connect it to its own network, the global nuclear security architecture would be seriously compromised. It would be a precedent without equivalent since the creation of international standards that regulate the civil use of atomic energy. Is there a meeting point? The IAEA has acted as an intermediary between Moscow and kyiv on multiple occasions. According to the Anadolu agencyGrossi traveled to Kaliningrad to meet with Likhachev, director of Rosatom, in order to directly discuss the situation in Zaporizhzhia and the minimum conditions to guarantee nuclear safety. At the same time, the agency is trying to technically shore up the Ukrainian electrical system. According to their own statementshas so far coordinated 174 deliveries of essential equipment – ​​switches, electrical cabinets, radiation monitoring stations, vehicles and computer equipment – ​​worth more than 20.5 million euros, intended to sustain nuclear security in Ukraine during the war. Nuclear security supported by fragile cables Europe breathes thanks to a handful of cables repaired under fire and diesel generators that have already proven to be well beyond their limits. As the Financial Times explainsthe continent’s security depends on electricity continuing to arrive and on the parties respecting the fragile ceasefires needed to repair lines when they go down. Grossi summed it up with a mix of relief and alarm after the restoration of one of the lines: “It is a good day for nuclear security, although the situation remains highly precarious.” And the precarious thing, in this case, is that a new attack, a mechanical failure or a downed line is enough to bring … Read more

the Stadler plant will be responsible for building 200 hybrid locomotives

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Stadler, a well-known Swiss manufacturer responsible for producing railway equipment, has announced a historic contract with the Luxembourg locomotive rental company Nexrail. The idea is to build up to 200 hybrid locomotives EURO9000. Although the company has not revealed official figures, according to According to Expansión, the order could reach 1.4 billion euros, taking into account that previous similar contracts have been around 7 million per unit. And why is all this important? Precisely because all production will be carried out at Stadler’s plant in Albuixech, Valencia. A boost for the Valencian industry. This mega order represents a fairly important injection of work for Stadler’s Valencian factory and consolidates its position as a strategic production center within the Swiss group. The Albuixech plant will be responsible for manufacturing the most powerful locomotive which is currently produced in Europe, a great recognition of the technical and industrial capacity that the Valencian factory provides. Hybrid technology. The EURO9000 hybrid It combines pantograph and batteries on a six-axis platform already proven on the market. With its multi-system design it allows it to operate without problems between borders of Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Italy. In addition, it can transport goods completely emission-free from terminal to terminal, which leaves aside diesel, a fuel that still predominates in many European corridors. Power. According to Stadler, these locomotives can operate alone even on the most demanding routes, such as transalpine corridors, without the need for an additional thrust locomotive. In direct current networks, the battery system provides extra power that improves performance and allows more load to be transported. It also offers an intelligent battery management system that optimizes regenerative braking, which reduces costs during peak electrical consumption and allows energy to be purchased at times of lowest price. The client and the first operator. The first user of these locomotives will be Hamburger Rail Service (HRS), according to has confirmed Stadler. “The EURO9000 with pantograph and batteries offers HRS a unique combination of flexible traction on lines with or without catenary, high traction capacity for our heavy loads and zero-emission operations,” explained Adem Gülaz, CEO of HRS. Decarbonization. Iñigo Parra, president of Stadler Valencia, has underlined that the order “reveals our joint commitment to sustainable innovation in rail freight transport.” For his part, Luuk von Meijenfeldt, CEO of Nexrail, highlighted that the company is “excited to lead the European locomotive market towards a zero-emissions future” and that this order marks “an important step in that transition.” Europe’s goals. The rail freight sector is immersed in a transformation process to meet European climate objectives, similar to what’s happening right now in the automotive world on the continent. Complete electrification of all lines is still economically unfeasible, so hybrid locomotives with batteries are now emerging as the most realistic solution for decarbonize the sector without giving up the operational flexibility that diesel locomotives still offer on non-electrified sections. Cover image | Stadler and Ivan Arlandis In Xataka | The lack of generational change has opened a job opportunity for thousands of young people in Spain: bus driver

A plant with seven million solar panels

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In one of the most unpopulated and arid regions of China, a landscape for centuries dominated by dust, a huge sand patch is starting to dye green. The cause is not a miraculous climate change or a mass reforestation project, but a solar park as large as the city of Madrid. Seven million solar panels. Located in the province of Qinghai, this megaobra still under construction extends over 610 square kilometers of Tibetan plateau with the aim of housing more than seven million photovoltaic panels. Its generation capacity will be sufficient to supply electricity to five million homes, which makes it the largest solar farm in the world. But beyond energy figures, the most surprising impact is being seen at ground level. Thus it is transforming the landscape. The installation It is having beneficial effects on local ecology. Solar panels, aligned in endless ranks, act as a barrier against the wind that reduces erosion, slows the advance of dust and sand and, more importantly, reduces the evaporation of soil water. Under the protective shadow of panels, vegetation has found an opportunity to prosper. The grass and small bushes are beginning to grow, which has created a greener ecosystem that attracts local fauna. Maintenance is in charge of the sheep. To maintain vegetation under control, the installation has hired sheep in the area. Thousands of sheep come to graze quietly among the panels, an association that a local official described Associated Press as a “win-win”. Although the area of ​​the area It is under public scrutiny For complaints of repression of the Uigur people, local revergeation is a powerful symbol in favor of the energy transition. Not only generates clean energy, but more humid microclimates and vegetation under the rows of panels, turned into meadows for the so -called “photovoltaic sheep.” China’s figures Marean. This project is the spearhead of the monumental China strategy to Lead the energy transition. In 2024, China was responsible for 61% of solar capacity facilities and almost 70% of wind installed on the planet. The figures by 2025 are even more spectacular. Only in the first half of the year, the Asian country added 212 GW of solar energy, more than all the capacity of the United States, as well as 51 GW of wind energy. This acceleration is paying off: China has already reached The objective proposed for 2030 and their carbon emissions have fallen for the first time. Image | Google Maps In Xataka | Minnesota installed solar panels in two huge crops. Five years later, they are a paradise for bees

Airtificial will manufacture parts of the first Spanish rocket at its Jerez plant

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Two of the most popular names of the Spanish high -tech industry have joined their paths. Airtificial, whose factory we visited a few years ago for the presentation of The first hyperloop capsulewill manufacture from now on reusable components for the first Spanish rocket, Miura 5 of PLD Space. Jerez composite. From the dream of magnetic levitation in vacuum tubes to the much more tangible reality of access to space. Aerospace & Defense Airtificial has agreed manufacture at its headquarters A series of composite material panels for PLD Space. They are, specifically, shields for the nozzles of the new Treprel-C engines. Critical elements that serve as a structural support, channeling the thrust of the engines to avoid vibrations that deformed the nozzles, and at the same time of thermal insulation, acting as a barrier that protects the rest of the systems of the lock of the heat of combustion. Why anestificial. The new PLD Space provider has 30 years of composite experience, a more light material than the metal that will reduce the weight of the Miura 5. In the space industry, less weight means greater efficiency and more load to orbit with the same fuel. In 2018, Airtificial acquired international fame after the presentation of Quintero One, a 30 -meter capsule made in carbon fiber compound material. It was a Hyperlooptt design, one of the companies that tried to materialize high -speed transportation promoted by Elon Musk. Today Hyperloop is considered One of the great technological failures of the last decade. Although Hyperlooptt continues to try, Virgin Hyperloop One closed, forcing the Spanish Zelleros to make adjustments. Years later, Airtificial has made the leap to the space industry. Miura 5 is not a promise. PLD Space has A detailed plan to become the European rocket factoryand the pieces begin to fit. After the debut flight of Miura 1, the Miura 5 of 34 meters high and five engines in its first stage is taking shape. Although your body is made of aluminum, it uses composed materials in areas such as cofia or the covers of the engines, which will be key For your future reusable version: PLD Space will try to recover the first stage of Miura 5 after the shock, and on this depends on the resistance of the components. The company is immersed in the qualification of the new Treprel-C engines, which will burn bioqueroseno and liquid oxygen. It is the first time they develop Rocket engines with turbobombs in Spain. The confidence in the project is such that there is already a date marked in red on the calendar to see the first Miura 5. The CEO Raúl Torres It is optimistic: “December 15 of this year. That is day D”. Images | Hyperlooptt, PLD Space In Xataka | This is the Spanish rocket Miura 5: Pld Space has presented it in images and hints that version 1.2 can land

The US pursues the AGI as if it were the Holy Grail. In China they are more pragmatic and are applying AI to plant tomatoes

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The long AI career continues its course, and although it seemed that the United States had taken the lead, China has managed to recover the lost terrain and stand up to the Big Tech. The funny thing is that The approaches of these two countries are totally differentand that makes great losers and winners here. In short and long term. US for the AGI. The North American country has a very different strategy from that of China in regards to artificial intelligence. Large technology companies are investing billions of dollars in search of that holy grail called AGI (General artificial intelligence). China, more pragmatic. On the other, China, which has adopted a different and much more pagmatic strategy. Rather pursue great objectives that a priori are far from being achieved, the Chinese government, led by Xi Jinping, is prioritizing The development of AI practical applications that are above all efficient and have limited implementation and, if it can be, low. Promises, promises. The difference between both visions is huge but highlights the mentality with which both countries face their efforts. The US companies that work in the US believe that the AGI is close despite Some experts They are clear that The generative AI is not the way. The Manhattan Project of the IA. That seems to give equal to visionary theorists looking for that AGI, because according to them, this mile military advantage that can suppose. For certain sectors politicians in the US the development of an AGI It is comparable What the Manhattan project was and the construction of the atomic bomb during World War II. But as they explain Some expertsthat project was not the three years of work, but rather supported studies and research that had been running for three decades in an US that at that time looked in the long term. China wants to be useful today. That way of contemplating the career of AI contrasts with that of China. Its leader, Xi Jinping, has not shown special interest in AGI, and its approach is much more pragmatic: he seeks to focus AI on applications for practical purposes. That has led to the Models of the AI ​​developed in China are already taking advantage of everyday tasks. Practical applications. For example, they point out In The Wall Street Journalhttps: //www.wsj.com/tech/ai/china-hasthe qualification of access exams to high school, the improvement of weather forecasts, or assistance to agriculture with methods to optimize crop rotation. It should be noted that the US also uses AI in these areas, at least in the form of projects such as Google Weather Lab either Alphafold 3 For the development of medications with AI. Chinese government support. Although there are efforts by both countries for that practical approach, the difference here is that in China there is a very fortune government support. Beijing is investing significantly in that vision with a Investment fund of 8,400 million dollars To support new startups, and both local governments and Chinese state banks have launched their own investment programs. And open models. Another of the key points that differentiate both strategies is that of the closed and owner of the models of the large US companies and Open and open source vision of Chinese models. These open models allow to be downloaded and freely modified, and also reduce the cost of implementing this technology for companies that want to adapt it to their needs. The trade war conditions everything. It is also true that commercial restrictions imposed by the US condition the Chips development and AI software in China. That has caused the Asian giant to have adopted a curious tactic: to let the US assume the enormous costs of exploring new paths to develop AI, and then follow its steps as quickly as possible but without having to face those strong economic investments. Risk aversion. Although Xi Jinping may raise a strategy that the AGI pursues, experts say it will only do it when I see that you have enough guarantees of succeeding. Kendra Schaefer, from the trivium Chinese consultant, explained How the Communist Party does not want to be threatened by an AGI that condition its future. According to her, the Chinese government is “one of the most reluctant governments to the planet’s risk.” Outstanding image | Xataka with Midjourney In Xataka | China has declared the war on private school: why he predicted the prolific “tutorials”

France promised them happy with the Grand Nuclear Power Plant. Until the jellyfish swarms arrived

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In France, jellyfish have knocked out one of the country’s largest nuclear centrals. Yes, the same jellyfish you are on the beach. Although it sounds delusional, the company Électricité e France (EDF) has acknowledged that an incident with these jelly and transparent celentéreos has forced to pause four of the production units of The Gravian Plantlocated north of the country. The most surprising thing is that it is not something exceptional. What happened? The news has been given by EDF itself, which in A statement Posted yesterday explains that the Gravelines Nuclear Power He has seen how four of his six production units went out for a peculiar motive: jellyfish. The first three units (2, 3 and 4) were automatically disconnected on Sunday night following security protocols to protect the reactor. The fourth (unit 6) also automatically went out on Monday. What happened exactly? EDF is quite clear In this regard. The stops are explained by “the massive and unpredictable presence” of jellyfish in the drums of the pumping stations, located in the non -nuclear part of the plant. What happened is best understood by remembering that gravoras, a of the largest centrals From France, it is refrigerated with the help of a channel connected to the North Sea. The plant has water pumping stations that allow it to refrigerate the reactors. The jellyfish were located precisely in filters that are responsible for aspiring sea water to control its temperature. The four units that went out automatically (2, 3, 4 and 6) are also added to production units 1 and 5, which already They were disabled For maintenance work. Was there any danger? EDF too It is clear At that point. He assures that at no time there was danger and that what happened did not affect the safety of the facilities or meant any risk for the template or the environment. “The plant equipment has mobilized and perform the necessary diagnoses and interventions to restart the production units safely,” guarantees. At first He pointed out that the affected units could be operational again on Thursday, but Reuters slides That the schedule may not be fulfilled: the idea was to restart the four units today, but in principle it will only one. The rest will resume the activity little by little, progressively, until Friday. What jellyfish were they? The operator has not clarified it, but the Reuters agency holds that is about Pulmo rhizostomaalso known as Aguamala. Its presence in Gravelines could be explained by two factors: first the temperature of the sea, higher this summer, which favors jellyfish flowers and that these remain longer in the North Sea; Second, the force of the currents, which would have pushed the banks towards the channel and the central. Is it the first time that happens? No. It is not usual, but neither was it out of the ordinary. Gravelines already lived something similar In the early 90s and there are other plants distributed throughout the world that have encountered similar problems. Swiss Info appointment Specifically, US facilities, Scotland, Sweden and Japan, which would also have suffered them last decade. Its proliferation is explained by water warming and The overfishingwhich has punished tuna banks. In this case, jellyfish have affected a relevant plant for France, equipped with six units that produce 900 megawatts of energy each, near 5.4 Gigawatts in total. The idea is that from 2040 shelter two EPR2 reactors. Images | Joel Filipe (UNSPLASH), EDF and Wikipedia In Xataka | SMR reactors were supposed to save nuclear energy. The first of the West for now is far from it

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