A US-built Tesla Roadster has broken the world record for the distance travelled by an electric production car on a single charge.

While competing in the Global Green Challenge, Australian Simon Hackett and co-driver Emilis Prelgauskas drove an incredible 313 miles before the batteries finally died in their Roadster.

Until now, the record has been held by another Tesla Roadster, after completing a 241 mile road rally on one charge.

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A student engineering team from Ohio State University broke into the 300 mph club yesterday with their hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle. The Buckeye Bullet 2 averaged 300.992 MPH yesterday in the flying kilometer, with a top recorded speed of 304 MPH.

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The Mission One electric superbike set a land speed record of 150 MPH at the Bonneville Salt Flats for electric bikes on the 1st of September. This record sets the Mission Motors electric motorcycle apart from the herd, proving both the viability and performance capabilities of electric motorbikes. With individual runs as high as 161 MPH, the Mission One achieved speeds faster than 70% of the entrants at the annual BUB Motorcycle Speed Trials.

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I’ve always enjoyed the antics of Jesse James, the motorcycle mogul who owns the custom bike shop West Coast Customs. He was the star of Monster Garage, where him and a team of equally-eccentric characters were challanged with creating oddball rides, such as an ambulance that does wheelies. That is one trip to the hospital I wouldn’t mind. But he isn’t exactly what I would call an “enviromentally concious” person, especially after last week’s episode of Jesse James Is A Dead Man, where Mr. James was tearing across through housing projects and golf courses in a nitrous-injected Camaro.

But apparently the idea of breaking the land speed record for hydrogen cars has been on his mind for some time now. Last Wednesday, Jesse blew past the current record of 185 mph and set a new record of 199.7 mph

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Rock legend Neil Young has never made a secret of his radical eco-credentials. Now it seems he’s putting his (non-fossil fuel based) creative juices to good use by releasing an entire concept album about … electric cars.

The album, called Fork in the Road, focuses on the singer’s most recent obsession - a retooled 1959 Lincoln Continental that runs entirely on alternative energy. Its main themes are inspired by Young’s involvement with the Lincvolt Project,  a collaboration between the singer and biodiesel innovator Johnathan Goodwin to develop a commercially viable electric power system for automobiles.

Following the earlier release of a single, also called Fork in the Road (video), Young’s label Warner Reprise have announced that the album will be available on April 7, and revealed the full tracklist (after the jump).

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According to a new study conducted by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, The average installed costs for photovoltaic cells (in real 2007 dollars) went down from $10.50-per-watt in 1998, to $7.60-per-watt in 2007.

What’s most amazing about this report is that it appears to validate a whole slew of state and local solar initiatives. The researchers found that—despite the many, many reported advances to solar cell efficiency—most of the savings during this nine year period came from reductions to installation and external hardware costs.

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Sun Well Solar—a subsidiary of the notoriously poor CD and DVD manufacturer, CMC Magnetics—has announced today that it is one month ahead of schedule in the ramp-up of its new photovoltaic production line.

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The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that, as a result of its enforcement actions, U.S. companies will spend a record-breaking $11.8 billion on pollution control and projects to clean up the environment this year.

The EPA calculates that the moves will result in a best ever reduction in pollution of 3.9 billion pounds per year, nearly four times the reduction achieved during 2007.

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Solar PV manufacturer Oerlikon Solar has pioneered a new thin film solar technology process, which it claims has made its solar cells 7 per cent efficient - a 16 per cent energy improvement over its previous technology. The advance has led to a 50 per cent increase in the capacity of its thin film solar fabrication plant.

So, why is this important? Well, thin film cells are typically a lot cheaper to produce than more common silicon solar cells, but often suffer from significantly lower conversion efficiencies. Oerlikon’s breakthrough moves us a lot closer to the day when thin film becomes more cost-effective than silicon-based panels - which could mean a dramatic rise in the adoption of solar power in homes and businesses.

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Scientists at the University of New South Wales have set a new world record by creating the first silicon solar cell to achieve 25% efficiency.

Team leader, Prof. Martin Green of the university’s ARC Photovoltaic Centre of Excellence, says their world-beating solar cell is now a massive six percent more efficient than the next best technology. The record edges the current generation of solar cell technology closer to the theoretical limit of 29% efficiency.

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However, now that the dust is (sort of) starting to settle, some more sober analysis of the Vice Presidential candidate’s record on renewable energy is starting to emerge.

For starters, as Alaskan Governor, there are signs that she may have paid more than lip service to her supposed support for alternatives to oil. She promised green campaigners that she would put together a comprehensive plan on renewables, and even appointed someone to head up the mission. Beyond this though, there has been little genuine conviction or leadership in support of the sector. In fact, as the summary below reveals, her record on the issue is decidedly shaky:

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Take, for example, these adorable bird coin purses from Etsy seller Bird Versus Bird which are made from vinyl scraps from a sign shop. Imagine how many vinyl banners from State Fair corndog stands are filling up landfills? Yuck. This seller also uses repurposed and recyclable materials for packaging in order to reduce waste.

This “Beer-merang” necklace earned its name from the boomerang shape and the fact that it was made using the plastic rings from a 6 pack of PBR beer. Saving critters lives, recycling, and looking cool, that is what it is all about! Check out Muse Glass for more styles.

If you have ever visited the record section of a thrift store, you will know that they have more discarded vinyl there then anyone knows what to do with. How many Kenny Rogers records does one store need? Nature Vs. Machine brings us this stunning vinyl record and sterling silver lotus necklace. Kenny Rogers never looked so good!

We all have some records laying around, don’t we? Instead of adding to a landfill or the thrift store collection, why not make some funky chip bowls like this one? Check out these instructions from Instructables to find out just how easy it is. (Just make sure that your record is not valuable collector’s first!) I think I know what to do with my old Alvin and the Chipmunks album!

There are so many ways to use recycled plastics in crafting - I could go on all day! Feel free to share your plastic crafts in a comment!

MISSION MOTORS ALL-ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE BREAKS
BONNEVILLE LAND SPEED RECORD
The Mission One all-electric superbike achieves a two-pass 150.059 mph record
with individual passes at speeds of 161mph

SAN FRANCISCO – September 15, 2009 – Mission Motors, a San Francisco based company redefining the world of performance motorcycles, announced today that its zero-emissions Mission One electric superbike has claimed the national AMA top speed record for an electric motorcycle, achieving a record 150.059 mph two-pass average run sustained for one mile at Bonneville Speedway on September 1st, 2009. Lead up to runs for the record saw one-way speeds across the mile stretch at 161mph.

The record-breaking top speed was achieved at the annual BUB Motorcycle Speed Trials at the Bonneville Speedway, approximately 90 miles west of Salt Lake City, UT. This event offers world and national record setting opportunities to top contenders in many classes. The Mission One achieved a top speed higher than 70% of the gasoline powered entrants.

“I give the credit for this achievement to our extraordinary engineering team. We set this record on our first visit to the Bonneville Salt Flats on poor salt conditions and in high cross-winds. And to set it with our production prototype vehicle, not a custom Bonneville bike is truly amazing,” said Edward West, Mission Motors Founder and President. “We’ve all known what was possible for the Mission One for some time, and to set this record is very gratifying. It’s a watershed moment for electric vehicles and further proof that the era of the electric superbike has begun. Electric is no longer the future of high-performance motorcycling; it is the present.”

Since returning from the TTXGP, Mission Motors’ engineering team has been working hard to improve the Mission One, resulting in this performance milestone. Its top speed puts the Mission One into a category all alone: the world’s fastest street-legal pure-electric motorcycle, and adds to the list of firsts that the young company has already achieved.

“The Mission One is just an incredible motorcycle,” said Jeremy Cleland, the AMA and AFM racer who shares duties as both Product Manager and Test Rider at Mission Motors. “This is a bike that can rip up the track at Infineon Raceway, do power wheelies at 80 mph, and then come out here to Bonneville and dismantle the prior electric world speed record. It pulls hard all the way from 0 on up to 161mph, all in one gear, with incredible torque. It’s a riding experience like no other. The important thing to understand is this is not a one-off race vehicle, this is a production prototype. It is the same bike that we raced at the Isle of Man and features the same powertrain that we will be delivering to our customers in 2010.”

Mission Motors has targeted high performance and iconic design in the development of its first vehicle, the Mission One. With a top speed of over 150 mph, a 150-mile range and unparalleled access to torque, the Mission One surpasses the performance of other production electric motorcycles and rivals gas-powered incumbents. The Mission One’s design, created by Yves Behar and fuseproject, blends traditional racing elements with a modern pioneering sensibility. The motorcycles are produced in San Francisco, CA with a radical commitment to environmental sustainability.

The company is selling 300 Mission One electric motorcycles in the 2010 model year, with the first 50 Premier Limited Edition models available for reservation now.

About Mission Motors:
Mission Motors is building the fastest production electric motorcycle in the world. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company combines innovative technology, iconic design, and superb performance with the freedom of a zero emissions riding experience. Mission’s elite team of engineers is creating the first motorcycle company built on the innovative spirit of the Silicon Valley. The concept is simple: Redefine the world of performance motorcycles. For more information on Mission Motors, visit www.ridemission.com.

The project has run out of funding several times during the past few years, but somehow they always find a donor and a way to continue on. In fact, one of the coolest ways to donate to Earthrace is to pay to be the fifth crew member on a leg of the race.

When the boat stopped recently in Miami, I had a chance to sit down and chat with the captain Pete, the resident videographer Ryan, and other boat and ground crew members. And yes, I even went for a ride. Below you'll find the video of that experience, with even more details straight from the captain about why this project is important, what types of biodiesel they have used (you'll be surprised!), and more ways that the boat is eco-friendly.

If you're feeling generous, consider helping out Earthrace in one way or another. They still need so many details to come together to make this race happen. To get a taste of last-minute issues, check out the ground crew blog!

MISSION MOTORS ALL-ELECTRIC MOTORCYCLE BREAKS
BONNEVILLE LAND SPEED RECORD
The Mission One all-electric superbike achieves a two-pass 150.059 mph record
with individual passes at speeds of 161mph

SAN FRANCISCO – September 15, 2009 – Mission Motors, a San Francisco based company redefining the world of performance motorcycles, announced today that its zero-emissions Mission One electric superbike has claimed the national AMA top speed record for an electric motorcycle, achieving a record 150.059 mph two-pass average run sustained for one mile at Bonneville Speedway on September 1st, 2009. Lead up to runs for the record saw one-way speeds across the mile stretch at 161mph.

The record-breaking top speed was achieved at the annual BUB Motorcycle Speed Trials at the Bonneville Speedway, approximately 90 miles west of Salt Lake City, UT. This event offers world and national record setting opportunities to top contenders in many classes. The Mission One achieved a top speed higher than 70% of the gasoline powered entrants.

“I give the credit for this achievement to our extraordinary engineering team. We set this record on our first visit to the Bonneville Salt Flats on poor salt conditions and in high cross-winds. And to set it with our production prototype vehicle, not a custom Bonneville bike is truly amazing,” said Edward West, Mission Motors Founder and President. “We’ve all known what was possible for the Mission One for some time, and to set this record is very gratifying. It’s a watershed moment for electric vehicles and further proof that the era of the electric superbike has begun. Electric is no longer the future of high-performance motorcycling; it is the present.”

Since returning from the TTXGP, Mission Motors’ engineering team has been working hard to improve the Mission One, resulting in this performance milestone. Its top speed puts the Mission One into a category all alone: the world’s fastest street-legal pure-electric motorcycle, and adds to the list of firsts that the young company has already achieved.

“The Mission One is just an incredible motorcycle,” said Jeremy Cleland, the AMA and AFM racer who shares duties as both Product Manager and Test Rider at Mission Motors. “This is a bike that can rip up the track at Infineon Raceway, do power wheelies at 80 mph, and then come out here to Bonneville and dismantle the prior electric world speed record. It pulls hard all the way from 0 on up to 161mph, all in one gear, with incredible torque. It’s a riding experience like no other. The important thing to understand is this is not a one-off race vehicle, this is a production prototype. It is the same bike that we raced at the Isle of Man and features the same powertrain that we will be delivering to our customers in 2010.”

Mission Motors has targeted high performance and iconic design in the development of its first vehicle, the Mission One. With a top speed of over 150 mph, a 150-mile range and unparalleled access to torque, the Mission One surpasses the performance of other production electric motorcycles and rivals gas-powered incumbents. The Mission One’s design, created by Yves Behar and fuseproject, blends traditional racing elements with a modern pioneering sensibility. The motorcycles are produced in San Francisco, CA with a radical commitment to environmental sustainability.

The company is selling 300 Mission One electric motorcycles in the 2010 model year, with the first 50 Premier Limited Edition models available for reservation now.

About Mission Motors:
Mission Motors is building the fastest production electric motorcycle in the world. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, the company combines innovative technology, iconic design, and superb performance with the freedom of a zero emissions riding experience. Mission’s elite team of engineers is creating the first motorcycle company built on the innovative spirit of the Silicon Valley. The concept is simple: Redefine the world of performance motorcycles. For more information on Mission Motors, visit www.ridemission.com.