Solar

Hugh Silcox of Baltimore installed a wireless thermometer in the concrete back "yard" of his rowhouse. Last Saturday it read 110 degrees. "Clearly the thermometer was basking in a direct beam of sunlight," he said. "Should I place the thermometer under an upturned flowerpot? Seems too cool to me." Keep looking, Hugh. Your yard's a solar furnace. Shade the sensor from direct sun and mount it away from brick or concrete, which absorbs and re-emits solar heat. It also needs air circulation.

Filene's Basement opens officially today Filene's Basement will officially open today at 9031 Snowden Square Drive, in Columbia, the former location of Best Buy. The facility has been renovated to accommodate its new tenant. "It was completely gutted, down to the bones," said store manager Steve Andrews. "We put in new tile, new carpeting, upgraded lighting, and naturally all our fixturing is brand new." A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned at 9:30 a.m. today. Filene's offers European and American name-brand and designer women's, men's and children's clothing, and some home furnishings and accessories, Andrews said.

There is no reason that the U.S. shouldn't be energy independent in 10 years. Yes, we would have to drill some more, but as Peter Morici points out ("Obama's bad bet," April 3), we would manage the environmental issues much better than others. The geopolitical and economic upside would be enormous. Solar (I do have a solar-powered water heater) and wind can be good supplements, but we have to wean ourselves from being dependent on Middle East and Latin American countries. Lyle Rescott, Marriottsville

The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab in Laurel has won a $600 million NASA contract to design, build and operate a fleet of spacecraft to study the sun and its impact on the Earth. The first launch under the 12-year contract, awarded by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, will be the Solar Dynamics Observatory, set for liftoff in 2006. Art Poland, an astrophysicist at Goddard and the center's former project scientist on the effort, said the new enterprise will extend much of what is being done by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in its study of the sun, but will do it in a more coordinated way. "It's like the human body," Poland said.

Filtering through the leavesof an elm,the phenomenon transferredcountless reflected imagesof a diminishing solar diskthat spilled over the sidewalks,creating infinite patternsof mirrored light and darknessso strikingly originalthat you could not stoplooking down at the eclipse.

Americans feeling the pain of soaring energy costs deserve more from their leaders. Politicians, including presidential candidates, should stop pandering with proposals designed only to win votes and offer comprehensive strategies to strengthen our economy and confront the energy challenge. Amazingly, investment tax credits for America's fledgling solar and wind power industries will expire this December, unless Congress ends a futile debate in which Republicans are resisting Democrats' proposals to pay for the relief with cuts in oil industry tax credits.

A storm of magnetic energy -- the second since January -- began sweeping past Earth late yesterday, threatening to disrupt vulnerable radio communications and electric power systems today or tomorrow.Alerted by a fleet of solar observatories, federal officials were advising vulnerable industries, such as power companies and communications satellite operators, to take whatever precautions they could.A similar, smaller solar magnetic storm in January is thought to have silenced a $200 million Telstar communications satellite, interrupted radio communications at an Antarctic base and triggered auroral displays.

The most detailed pictures ever made of the surface of the sun have revealed unexpected "mountains" of glowing gas. The discovery is forcing theorists to reconsider how the sun's surface features contribute to climate shifts on Earth, 93 million miles away. Images from the new 1-meter-diameter Swedish solar telescope in the Canary Islands show shifting ranges of mountain-like features 125 miles to 280 miles high, and vast fields of flat-topped "mesas" the size of Texas. They're formed near dark sunspots by the upwelling of hot gas from the sun's interior, and shaped by magnetic fields.

PRODUCTDOSE.COM What's the point? -- The site's contributors spotlight new and intriguing products in a variety of topics, including technology, style and home design. What to look for --Check out the recommendations by category, or click on one of the suggested products (recent ones include everything from solar-powered light-emitting tiles to stylish jeans without unnecessary bells and whistles) to go directly to an e-tailer selling the product.