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To Fight Climate Change, California Says 'We're Launching Our Own Damn Satellite' (latimes.com)
An anonymous reader quotes the Los Angeles Times:
Jerry Brown closed his climate summit in San Francisco on Friday with a dramatic announcement: California will launch its own satellite into orbit to track and monitor the formation of pollutants that cause climate change. "With science still under attack and the climate threat growing, we're launching our own damn satellite," Brown said in prepared remarks. "This groundbreaking initiative will help governments, businesses and landowners pinpoint -- and stop -- destructive emissions with unprecedented precision, on a scale that's never been done before...."
The state will develop the satellite with the San Francisco-based Earth-imaging firm Planet Labs, a company founded by former NASA scientists in 2010. The state may ultimately launch multiple satellites into space, according to the governor's office.... Robbie Schingler, co-founder of Planet Labs, said the project will inform "how advanced satellite technology can enhance our ability to measure, monitor, and ultimately, mitigate the impacts of climate change..." Brown's announcement came in quickly delivered remarks at the close of the three-day gathering and received a standing ovation from many in the audience.
Governors from 17 states (and from both political parties) also pledged to spend $1.4 billion to lower auto emissions, using money from Volkwagen's legal settlement over falsifying clean-air performance data. New York City also announced that its pension fund would invest $4 billion in companies offering climate change solution over the next three years.
And 26 states, cities and businesses said they'd procure non-polluting vehicle fleets by 2030, while ChargePoint and EV Box pledged to build 3.5 million new charging stations around the world.
The state will develop the satellite with the San Francisco-based Earth-imaging firm Planet Labs, a company founded by former NASA scientists in 2010. The state may ultimately launch multiple satellites into space, according to the governor's office.... Robbie Schingler, co-founder of Planet Labs, said the project will inform "how advanced satellite technology can enhance our ability to measure, monitor, and ultimately, mitigate the impacts of climate change..." Brown's announcement came in quickly delivered remarks at the close of the three-day gathering and received a standing ovation from many in the audience.
Governors from 17 states (and from both political parties) also pledged to spend $1.4 billion to lower auto emissions, using money from Volkwagen's legal settlement over falsifying clean-air performance data. New York City also announced that its pension fund would invest $4 billion in companies offering climate change solution over the next three years.
And 26 states, cities and businesses said they'd procure non-polluting vehicle fleets by 2030, while ChargePoint and EV Box pledged to build 3.5 million new charging stations around the world.
Unanticipated flooding, droughts, erosion of the coastline... I can think of a lot of things which could go wrong.
Remote sensing does a lot for everyone, including poor people. At last count 10 people were dead from tropical storm Florence. But we've known for days exactly where it was going to hit and when. Imagine what it would be like if the first indication was hours instead of days in advance.
That's what it was like when I was a kid, Nobody had maps showing that a tropical depression over by the Azores was going to hit North Carolina five days from now as a major hurricane,
So it turns out knowledge is actually valuable in practical ways to ordinary people. It's not some kind of luxury just for namby-pamby smart people.
Post may contain irony: discontinue use if experiencing mood swings, nausea or elevated blood pressure.
I'm sure CA would be happy to stop accepting federal money completely, provided that the federal gov. stopped accepting any money from CA.
Nullius in verba
What is needed is multiple like OCO2/OCO3. Then monitor around the world. Seriously, a number of nations cheat. With the sats, it will be possible to find out which ones. Ideally, CA will tax consumed goods/.services based on which nation/state the worst sub-part/service comes from
There are many reasons to go into space: To gain new knowledge, to help our ships at sea steer a safer course, to explore and learn new techniques of mapping and observation, to discover new tools of science and medicine, to expand the furthest outposts on the new frontier, for the growth of science and education.
Some may go to space not because it is easy, but because it is hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one they are willing to accept, one they are unwilling to postpone, and one which they intend to win.
But only California would go to space to raise taxes.
DATABASE WOW WOW
Why would it be unconstitutional?
1. Import-Export Clause of The US Constitution
2. Tax and Spending Clause of the US Constitution
States can't collect tariffs, can't tax based on origin, and can't have their own foreign policies.
Nothing illegal about that.
Bullcrap.
Before you continue arguing for tossing out these constitutional clauses, because, hey, Jerry Brown is a great guy, you should consider that they could then be abused by your opponents as well. If California can have their own foreign policy, then why not Texas and Oklahoma?
The Constitution was well thought out and well written. We water it down at our peril.
Democrat-led Senate. Democrat President. Republican GOP. Shutting down Yucca Mountain was a goal of President Obama and he worked with his own DOE to make it happen. President Obama submitted continuing resolutions that tied elimination of Yucca Mountain funding to military expenditures - so it was either shut down the military or shut down Yucca Mountain. The Senate (led by Harry Reid) loved that as well. Definitely a priority for the President and for half of Congress - such that they were willing to eliminate funding of Constitutional duties of Government before they let it keep running.
Browsing at +1 - no ACs, I ignore their posts. So refreshing!
You have just described the entire United States Defense budget since 1950, which probably adds up to over $50 trillion squandered, and nothing but misery around the world to show for it. And some very wealthy defense contractors, of course.
At least when California does a public works project, people get some jobs and there isn't a body count in the 100s of thousands.
You are welcome on my lawn.
Says man not living under threat of nuclear death from Cuban-based missile launchers.
You fucking imbecile.