Staff analysis

U.K. defense contractor QinetiQ knew enough to not use wax in its unmanned, solar powered test plane.

By keeping away from any melting materials, and sticking with lightweight carbon fibers, the company claims to have hit a new world record of 54 hours at more than 50,000 feet above New Mexico this week.

The current record is 30 hours and 24 minutes, set by Northrop Grumman's Global Hawk in March 2001.

But QinetiQ may have flown too close to the Sun after all, as the flight of its ultra-thin "Zephyr" was not witnessed by officials from the World Air Sports Federation.

The federation keeps and certifies records, the company said.

Absolutely no melty bits >>

For those who wonder what CO2-to-algae looks like close up, there was a demonstration system at this week's Burning Man festival.

New uses for old colostomy bags?

The Chlorophyll Collective—a loose affiliation of scientists and industry types that's trying to assemble algae information, Unix "open source"-style—assembled the demonstration to take the exhaust discharge from an electrical generator at Burning Man and use it to foster the growth of algae.

It's the end of an era.

We hope we look this good when we're 84.

Energy Conversion Devices (NASDAQ: ENER) today announced after market close that Stanford R. Ovshinsky, its co-founder, principal inventor, chief scientist and technologist, will retire as an active employee and director of the company effective August 31, 2007.

Who needs solar panels when you can reduce your carbon footprint from the comfort of your own couch?

Instead of chomping down on popcorn while watching your favorite TV show, you can grab a handful of Terra Nostra Organic chocolate bars.

You may pack on the calories, but you'll be carbon-neutral with Terra Nostra.

The Vancouver-based chocolate maker announced today that it offsets 100 percent of the carbon emissions of all of its bars manufactured in the U.S.

The company said it purchases wind power credits through renewable energy certificate company Clean and Green.

Tech giant Google—wealthy enough to have resources to pursue environmental leadership in whatever obscure place it may—has taken an odd step.

It has introduced a black background version of its search engine.

Yes, it's the same old Google. Just on black, instead of white.

Why?

A study from back in 2002 found that cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors expend significantly less energy to display black than white or other colors.

Ultracapacitor maker Maxwell Technologies (NASDAQ: MXWL) has a new capo this morning.

The company announced today that CEO Richard D. Balanson is moving to become a part-employee and function as a senior technical advisor.

In today's announcement, Balanson gave the ol' "we're at an inflection point" statement, followed up with the venerable "it's now time for someone else to guide the company through the next phase of its growth and development."

Balanson had been at the post since 1999.

The company is trading at $14.55 this morning, down significantly from $22.21 a year ago.

It doesn't end with driving up the price of food (and beer).

The latest casualty of America's rush to corn-based ethanol appear to be shrimp and other marine life in the Gulf of Mexico.

The seasonal dead zone caused by nitrogen fertilizer runoff down the Mississippi from the American heartland has about doubled in size since scientists began studying it in 1985.

This year, with the amount of land put into corn production for ethanol, it's expected to be even worse, according to researchers.

Taking a cue from similar biodiesel directories (see Need biodiesel? Try NEEDBIO.com), electric car maker ZAP (OTCBB: ZAAP) today introduced a new electric car charging outlet finder.

Owners of electric cars can find and report the location of public and private charging outlets at www.pluginmap.org.

So many people are unconvinced about U.S. Sustainable Energy Corporation (PINKSHEETS: USSE) and the claims it makes about its fuel (oh, say, for instance, see Is cellulosic startup full of beans?) that it's news when someone comes forward to sing the company's praises as emphatically as has State Senator Bob M. Dearing of Mississippi, the home state of USSE.

USSE is now sharing a letter from Senator Dearing to USSE CEO John Rivera, which, in part, reads:

Is it a watershed in our industry? Or just bad management?

Media company O'Reill—best known for its IT books—has abandoned its planned energy industry conference.

Titled "Energy Innovation" and scheduled for August 22nd through 24th in San Francisco, the conference has been "postponed," organizers admitted to the Cleantech Group.

Indeed, the conference's website has been taken down and removed with a placeholder.

Registrations had been disappointing, the head of marketing intimated.