Construction starts on NL’s first energy-neutral highway

DutchNews, February 16, 2017

Photo: Regering.nl 

On Thursday, the Netherlands started construction of the first energy-neutral highway, reports the Financiele Dagblad. 

The A6 to Almere expansion project has already won a European Procura+ sustainability award, in 2016.

Last June, infrastructure minister Schultz van Haegen announced that the Dutch road and water network will be fully energy neutral by 2030, with solar panels along roads and waterways, and roadside grass cuttings converted to green gas. 

The current motorway widening project on the A6 will have 30km of solar panels to supply the energy for road and traffic lights, while infrastructure body Rijkswaterstaat is also trying to develop a type of asphalt that will reduce fuel consumption by producing less drag. 

But, reports the Financiele Dagblad, the A6 project has not been without problems as, due to “mistakes” made in the local municipality, it does not have access to all of the land it required and so “must improvise”.

And Eindhoven makes three: Stella Lux wins cruiser class Solar race

DutchNews, October 25, 2015

Photo: World Solar Challenge

Dutch students have taken the second big prize at the World Solar Challenge in Australia thanks to Eindhoven University, which won the cruiser class competition for family cars. 

The Stella Lux crossed the finishing line in second place behind a Japanese car but won the top prize on points because it was more comfortable and could carry more passengers, the organisers said. 

The two-man team completed the 3,000 kilometre Australia crossing with an average speed of 76 kph. Eindhoven were defending champions, having taken the prize when the cruiser class was launched two years ago. 

The World Solar Challenge takes place every two years. Last week, Delft University took top place in the challenger event, which is all about speed, narrowly beating students from Twente into second place.

WE DID IT!! WORLD CHAMPIONS!! @WorldSolarChlg #stellalux pic.twitter.com/oCtzbymTwH

— Solar Team Eindhoven (@SolarEHV) October 25, 2015

Related  Article:

Dutch students take first and second place in solar car power race across Australia

The Nuna 8 on its way. Photo: Nuna Sola Power team

Kualanamu International Airport Gets Four-Star Rating From Skytrax

Jakarta Globe, Eko Adityo, Jun 21, 2015

Kualanamu International Airport at Kuala Namu, Deli Serdang, North Sumatra,
opened in March. (Antara Photo/Widodo S. Jusuf)

Jakarta. Kualanamu International Airport at Kuala Namu, in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra, has been rated four stars by Skytrax World Airport Star Rating, a global quality benchmarking assessor that evaluates standards of service quality for airports worldwide.

The rating from Skytrax puts Kualanamu airport on the same level as other more well-known four-star aviation facilities, including the Charles de Gaulle Airport in France, Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands and Heathrow Airport in England, said president director of state airport operator Angkasa Pura II, Budi Karya Sumadi.

Skytrax’s assessment include facilities at terminals, comfort at terminals, transit services, shopping and food areas, immigration services, security checks, services for departure and arrival, as well as supporting land transportation.

Kualanamu, inaugurated on March 27, is now the most modern airport in Indonesia, beating the busiest airport in the country, Soekarno-Hatta in Cengkareng, Banten. One of its most competitive features is the integrated baggage handling screening system, which gives the highest security level for baggage screening.

Kualanamu  is also the only airport in Indonesia  integrated with train networks to ease access for travelers.

Investor Daily

Saudi Arabia gives top prize to cleric who blames George Bush for 9/11

Controversial Indian preacher Zakir Naik awarded the King Faisal international prize for promoting Islam through his hugely popular Peace TV channel

The Guardian - AFP, 1 March 2015

Zakir Naik siad ‘even a fool will know’ that the 9/11 attacks were an
‘inside job’. Photograph: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

An Indian television preacher who has called the 9/11 attacks an “inside job” received one of Saudi Arabia’s most prestigious prizes on Sunday, for “service to Islam”.

Zakir Naik, president of the Islamic Research Foundation in India, was one of five recipients of the King Faisal international prize from Saudi Arabia’s King Salman during a ceremony at a luxury Riyadh hotel.

The annual prizes are a project of the King Faisal Foundation, established in 1976 by the children of King Faisal bin Abdul Aziz who died in 1975.

Naik was honoured for being one of the most renowned non-Arabic speaking promoters of Islam. He founded the Peace TV channel, billed as the world’s only channel specialising in comparative religion.

It has an estimated English-language audience exceeding 100 million, according to his award citation.

“Islam is the only religion that can bring peace to the whole of humanity,” he said in a video biography aired at the ceremony.

In a July 2008 Peace TV broadcast, Naik suggested that al-Qaida was not responsible for flying hijacked airliners into New York’s World Trade Center on 11 September 2001, killing almost 3,000 people.

“Even a fool will know that this was an inside job,” he said in the video, claiming then-president George W Bush was behind the attacks.

In 2010 Naik was reportedly barred from entering Britain for “numerous comments” which showed his “unacceptable behaviour”.

Naik said on Sunday that he would donate all of his $200,000 prize money to Peace TV.

The other prizewinners were:

In Islamic studies, Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Kaki for his research on the cultural heritage of the Muslim holy city of Medina

In medicine, Jeffrey Ivan Gordon of the United States, whose research has enhanced understanding of diseases such as obesity, which is a growing problem in Saudi Arabia

Michael Gratzel of Switzerland for his development of solar cells, and co-winner Omar Mwannes Yaghi of the United States for his work in the new field of metal organic frameworks

Related Articles:

GOP lawmaker: You will ‘rethink everything’ when full 9/11 report is released

What Really Happened on 9/11? (Matthew’s Message, April 26, 2005)

Kryon Q&A

Question (2002): Dear Kryon, A friend and I are meditating on the recent shark attacks and feel that it has to do with the planetary changes. We just can’t understand why they have become aggressive. What is the message the sharks are bringing? Why is this happening?

—Thank you,

Maryann

Answer: Indeed there are changes with the environment and also with biology regarding the 12-year grid change. I will first give you what was happening in general: What you are seeing are mammals, amphibians, insects, and even fish that are in areas that are new to them. Every life-form that migrates is effected by magnetics. All life forms that follows certain feeding scenarios and are “following the food” have the potential to be affected. This is due to the changing of the magnetic ley lines of the earth as we have stated before.

The areas where you can see in the ocean most clearly are within those migration patterns closest to the land. Where the ocean interfaces with the land, there are challenges for all these creatures for at least one of their generations. Whales will beach themselves by following old magnetics headings that now “drive” them into peninsula’s and other land areas that were marginally on the edge of their old paths. Birds, amphibians, and insects will be seen to do odd things for awhile.

So these shark fish may be in greater numbers in these coastal areas than in the past, but the increased aggressive behavior was actually something else: There was a tremendous “release” of energy due to the Sept. 11 event. Much like the energy of earthquakes and other earth movement, much of the environment “feels it” coming. We have spoken about how the Sept. 11 event was not a surprise to the earth. [See Lee’s article “Did Kryon give us hints”] So, some of the new actions of these fish were due to an actual energy buildup of coming events... of which you now understand.

If you are paying attention, therefore, you might ask, “Does this mean that Human consciousness issues affect the actual earth?” Yes they do! Finally you may begin to see how global consciousness is tied into the environment, and even to basic physics and reality. They are not separate, and never were. The indigenous knew it, and now the “modern” world is beginning to wonder.

Blessed is the Human Being who understands that what they think, do, and intend, actually drives the reality of the dirt of the planet!

Tesla Tops US Best Car List for 2nd Year

Jakarta Globe – AFP, Feb 25, 2015

(Photo courtesy of Tesla Motors)

Washington. Consumer Reports named the luxury electric Tesla S its top car for the second straight year, calling the market-shaking sedan a “technological tour de force.”

The annual top-10 ranking, based on independent road performance, reliability and crash tests, also gave top category honors to three Subaru models, a landmark sweep for the small Japanese maker.

But the Japanese overall won only six slots, their lowest tally since the influential consumer ratings magazine began the list 19 years ago.

Instead, three American brands — the Tesla, the Buick Regal and the Chevrolet Impala — held their own in the top 10.

“Detroit vehicles are breaking through in new categories,” said Mark Rechtin of Consumer Reports’ car ratings team.

“Many have come a long way in performance, technology, and improved reliability.”

“These are the cars that ignite the gasoline in our veins. That we trust. Respect. And love,” the magazine said.

“They also happen to score high in our reliability ratings and shine in automotive crash tests.”

The $80,000-plus plug-in Tesla again captured the magazine’s fancy as its overall top pick, and not just for the car’s market-beating 426 kilometer range without a charge.

Consumer Reports praised the ability to update the Tesla’s software over the Internet, and that the company surmounted early technical problems, including a handful of fires that started from objects on the road surface kicking into its underside battery pack.

With those problems aside, Consumer Reports lauded the Tesla S’s “magnificence and sheer technological arrogance.”

Subaru, whose all-wheel-drive models are popular with both sport driving fans and outdoorists, led three categories of the 10.

The Impreza led the compact car group as a “strong value,” and the Legacy was the best midsized sedan (it “exceeds those drab, rental-car expectations … also has the best ride among its peers”).

And the Forester grabbed one of the hottest market segments, the small sport-utility vehicles.

“Subaru has nailed the recipe of combining practicality, safety, fuel economy, value, and interior accommodations,” said the magazine.

The Audi A6 came in tops for a luxury car, and, unsurprisingly, on the green car side Toyota’s hybrid Prius took the honors for the 12th straight year.

Toyota’s Highlander was best mid-sized SUV and the Honda Odyssey the winner among minivans.

But the surprise was the inclusion of the Chevrolet Impala as the best large car, beating out the Toyota Avalon and Lexus ES 350.

Only slightly less surprising was the Buick Regal as the leading sports sedan. It is better known elsewhere as the Opel Insignia, with its German roots emphasized by Consumer Reports.

“Close your eyes, and you’ll think you’re driving an Audi — a very good Audi at that,” it gushed.

Agence France-Presse

US-Russia duo land in Mexico after balloon journey

Two hot air balloon pilots have touched down in Mexico, completing a record-breaking flight across the Pacific Ocean. The six-day adventure smashed world records unbeaten for over three decades.

Deutsche Welle, 31 Jan 2015

 View of earth from the Two Eagles Balloon

The helium-filled balloon piloted by the American Troy Bradley and Russian Leonid Tiukhtyaev landed safely in the sea just off the Baja coast near La Poza Grande on Saturday.

"The pilots made a controlled descent to a gentle water landing about four miles (6.5 kilometers) off the ... coast. The balloon is stable and still inflated and the pilots are fine," the Two Eagles balloon team announced.

Meanwhile, at mission control in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the balloon team and pilots' families exchanged hugs and relieved smiles as they watched the landing on a giant screen.

Relief and joy. Two Eagles gas ballon pilots are out of the ballon capsule after successful water landing, Baja coast pic.twitter.com/SijuFt62u0
— Marla Brose (@marlabq) January 31, 2015

Historic flight

Bradley, 50, and Tiukhtyaev, 58, set off on their epic voyage from Saga, Japan, on Sunday morning. By Friday, they had broken consecutive distance and duration world records by flying for over 137 hours and traveling more than 8,383 kilometers in a gas-filled balloon.

According to the Two Eagles team, the duo's six-day journey was eventually timed at 160 hours and 37 minutes at a distance of 10,696 kilometers (6,646 miles). They are the first crew to attempt a trans-Pacific balloon crossing since 1981 - when the distance record was set. The flying duration record of 137 hours was set by a trans-Atlantic balloon flight in 1978.

Mission control director Steve Shope said he was "really pleased" with the numbers. "These are significant improvements over the existing records," he said. "We didn't break them by just a little bit. They were broken by a significant amount."

Bradley and Tiukhtyaev managed to keep
 their spirits up during the grueling journey

The record-shattering trip wasn't without its challenges, though. Difficult weather conditions off the western coast of the United States meant that the team had to abandon their original plan to land in Canada, and instead veered south towards Mexico for the descent.

The two men traveled in an unpressurized carbon-fiber flight capsule, described as being smaller than a king-sized mattress, and took turns piloting the balloon in shifts of four-to-six hours. They had to stay rugged up in cold-weather gear and use oxygen masks to be able to withstand the conditions at an altitude of over 4,700 meters (15,500 feet).

Organizers cautioned that the new world records would not be made official until they had been certified by US and International Aeronautics Associations.

nm/mkg (AP, AFP, dpa)

Garuda Indonesia Awarded the Best Airline in Asia and Australasia

Jakarta Globe, ID/Inneke lady & ID/Tri Murti, September 12, 2013

Garuda Indonesia staff hold a welcoming ceremony outside the airline’s
Boeing Boeing 777-300ER. (Majalah Investor Photo/Uthan A Rachim)

National carrier Garuda Indonesia has been elected best airline in Asia and Australasia, beating established regional heavyweights Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines in the 2013 Passenger Choice Awards.

“Thanks to the strong commitment of management and employees in giving the best service, Garuda’s performance is being gradually acknowledged at an international level,” Garuda Indonesia’s president director Emirsyah Satar said in a statement on Wednesday. “This encourages Garuda to continue the Quantum Leap 2011-2015 program, in which the Garuda Group will be a five-star airline and operate 194 aircraft by 2015.”

The carrier currently operates a fleet of 124 planes.

The New York–based Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX) ran the Anaheim, California event.

Garuda came out on top of five other finalists: Singapore Airlines, Qantas Airways, Cathay Pacific, Air New Zealand and Pakistan Airlines.

Passengerchoiceawards.com ran the online survey, and the Nielsen Company, a leading global survey institution, tabulated it.

Garuda was also chosen in the Top 5 Best Overall Passenger Experience category, together with Emirates, Etihad Airways, Virgin America and Virgin Atlantic; in the Top 5 Best Ground Experience category, along with Avianca, Delta Airlines, El Al Israel Airlines and Virgin America, Avianca and El Al Israel Airlines; and in the Top 5 Best Inflight Publication category, along with Avianca, Ethiopian Airlines, Gulf Air, and Taca International Airlines.

This latest accolade followed Garuda’s inclusion in the World’s Top 10 Airlines by Skytrax.

Garuda booked $1.73 billion in operational revenue in the first semester of 2013, up 14.1 percent from to the same period last year.

The increase was near-commensurate with the rise in the number of passengers Garuda Indonesia and its low-cost offshoot Citilink could accommodate. They issued a combined 11.9 million tickets in H1, 2013, a 23.96 percent increase from the first semester of 2012. Cargo transport also increased from 132.06 tons in the first half of 2012 to 172.26 tons this year.

Gerry Soejatman, an aviation analyst, said the award and recognitions indicated the airline’s progress, but that it still had much to do in order to realize its ambitions.

“This means the airline must keep developing to maintain its position,” he said, adding that Garuda needed to offer more flights to Europe.