Big Tech goes nuclear

Oct 18, 2024
Plus: AI slop is all over Spotify, and a tiny island is making bank off “.ai” websites.
Constellation Energy (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Taller, slicker data centers could be the future

Oct 1, 2024
Data centers are getting taller and slicker as they move closer to urban and suburban areas.
A construction crew works on a CloudHQ data center in Ashburn, Virginia.
Nathan Howard/Getty Images

The U.S. military looks at electrifying the sky

One example is Joby Aviation’s electric “air taxi.”
"Marketplace" host Kai Ryssdal sits in a flight simulator for an electric aircraft made by Joby Aviation.
Sophia Paliza-Carre/Marketplace

Our old electrical grid is limiting how much wind and solar power we can use

Sep 17, 2024
It isn't easy to upgrade a 20th-century system of transmission lines, generating stations and home outlets for 21st-century needs.
Solar and wind power generate direct current, which must be converted to alternating current to "play well" with the existing electrical grid, historian Julie Cohn says.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Demand for generators grows amid Texas outages. But who can afford them?

Sep 9, 2024
The price of a generator can range from hundreds to many thousands of dollars, putting them out of reach for the most vulnerable.
Extreme weather means blackouts are a part of life in Texas. But for low-income seniors and others in need, buying a generator to operate an air conditioner or medical equipment may be out of reach.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Government stockpiles of metals, materials could aid clean energy transition

Sep 4, 2024
Leaders in Washington have been busy replenishing U.S. stockpiles for war. But they may be more likely to be used in battling climate change.
Some materials used by the defense industry could play a role in wind and solar facilities battling climate change. Above, workers move the blade of a wind turbine.
Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images

One coal town seeks to transition after its power plant closes

Aug 16, 2024
As coal plants around the country are retired, communities have to fund ways to rebuild.
Many cities historically dependent on coal-fueled power plants have to plan for a more renewable future.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Oil prices dip but still face plenty of upward pressure

Aug 5, 2024
Recession fears blunt demand, lowering prices. But conflict in the Middle East and OPEC+ production cuts could push them up again.
Considering the global economy and geopolitics, the price of oil has remained remarkably stable, says Hugh Daigle at the University of Texas at Austin.
Getty Images/shotbydave

A voyage down the Houston Ship Channel

Jul 5, 2024
While you may be hard pressed to find the Houston Ship Channel on anybody’s bucket list, this 110-year-old dredging work is critical to U.S. oil and gas exports and has a free guided boat tour that’s been around since 1958.
Captain Greg Penton steers the Sam Houston tour boat through the Houston Ship Channel during a summer tour.
Elizabeth Trovall/Marketplace

Mexican President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum's next steps on energy could make waves in the U.S.

Jul 4, 2024
Whether Sheinbaum follows her predecessor’s lead or strikes a new path could have significant implications for the U.S., particularly for Texas.
Mexico's president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum on June 24.
Lennin Domínguez/ObturadorMX/Getty Images