RSS feed source: Federal Emergency Management Agency

HICKORY, N.C. – Debris removal. Restoration of utilities. Emergency repairs to public bridges and water systems. Overtime costs for emergency personnel. Evacuation support. Transportation of supplies for the public.

These are some of the costs the state of North Carolina and communities in Western North Carolina experienced for emergency response to Tropical Storm Helene. FEMA is reimbursing most of those costs through its Public Assistance Program. More than 2,300 projects have been submitted to Public Assistance and are in process.

“The state and FEMA continue to work together to provide the much-needed assistance to those communities impacted by Tropical Storm Helene and to help them with the costs associated with responding to this unprecedented storm,” said North Carolina Emergency Management Director Will Ray. “We recognize there is a long road ahead but through a whole of community approach we will get there.”

Since January, here are some of the FEMA grants provided to the state and communities:

French Broad Electric Membership Corporation: $8,694,790 for costs of restoring emergency power. The funding reimburses the utility for work in Buncombe, Haywood, Madison, McDowell, Mitchell and Yancey counties. Emergency work included restoration of gauges, poles, transformers, conductor wires, crossarms and associated hardware as well as removal of debris affecting the power system.

North Carolina Highway Patrol: $3,352,651 for costs for emergency protective measures, including personnel overtime, evacuations, water rescues, transportation of

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RSS feed source: Federal Emergency Management Agency

The University of Florida (UF) seeks a Director for the UF Astraeus Space Institute (https://astraeus.ufl.edu), a campus-wide institute dedicated to bringing space research communities together within the university and within the state of Florida. The mission of the Astraeus Space Institute is to celebrate, facilitate and accelerate the exploration of space at UF, primarily by fostering interdisciplinary research in spaceflight operations, space engineering, human spaceflight, astrobiology, astronomy and the wide range of associated sciences like artificial intelligence, policy, law, and social impact enabled across the University of Florida.  This Institute will leverage existing strengths in space biology, materials, guidance and control, sensor development, and artificial intelligence within each of our academic units.  Astraeus will partner with UF departments, colleges and other institutes to grow UF space research across the UF research and education enterprise. Astraeus will also be a key

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RSS feed source: Federal Emergency Management Agency

In-brief analysis

April 22, 2025

Utility-scale solar power capacity in China reached more than 880 gigawatts (GW) in 2024, according to China’s National Energy Administration. China has more utility-scale solar than any other country. The 277 GW of utility-scale solar capacity installed in China in 2024 alone is more than twice as much as the 121 GW of utility-scale solar capacity installed in the United States at the end of 2024.

Planned solar capacity projects will likely lead to continued growth in China’s solar capacity. More than 720 GW of solar capacity are in development: about 250 GW under construction, nearly 300 GW in pre-construction phases, and 177 GW of announced projects, according to the Global Solar Power Tracker compiled by Global Energy Monitor.

Some of the largest projects under development are in the Inner Mongolia

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