Energy

President Trump praised the 2017 opening of this mine in Friedens, Pa., which created around 100 jobs.

Coal Jobs Have Gone Up Under Trump, But Not Because Of His Policies

5:00am February 23, 2018

by Jennifer Ludden

The number of U.S. coal jobs rose slightly during the president's first year in office. But energy analysts credit short-term market forces and say they won't stop long-term decline.

The offshore oil drilling platform called Gail, operated by Venoco, Inc., off the coast of Santa Barbara, Calif., in 2009.

California May Have A Way To Block Trump's Offshore Drilling Push

9:49am February 08, 2018

by Lauren Sommer

In the 1980s, California towns used local zoning rules to block offshore oil and gas drilling. State lawmakers are considering a similar strategy to push back against the Trump administration.

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Denver's newest skyscraper (center) followed new building codes for energy efficiency. The city wants to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.

Despite Progress, Cities Struggle With Ambitious Climate Goals

4:27pm February 06, 2018

by Dan Boyce

Dozens of cities are vowing to cut their carbon emissions and uphold the U.S. commitment to the Paris climate deal. Despite progress, many are falling short of their most ambitious goals.

Jason Czapla, principal engineer for Controlled Thermal Resources, surveys the site where the company's Hell's Kitchen Plant will be built.

The Forgotten Renewable: Geothermal Energy Production Heats Up

12:49pm February 05, 2018

by Benjamin Purper

Experts say the American West is full of geothermal reservoirs whose energy could power millions of homes. But extracting that energy isn't easy.

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The Upper Tularik Floodplain in the Bristol Bay watershed in Alaska is the site of a fight over a proposed mining project has dragged on for years.

In Reversal, EPA Suspends Alaska Mining Proposal To Preserve Watershed Protections

11:24pm January 28, 2018

by Daysha Eaton

In a surprise announcement, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said the agency will not rescind protections imposed in 2014, based on assessments the mine would cause significant harm to the watershed.

Who Wins And Loses From Tariff Placed On Solar Imports

4:19pm January 24, 2018

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with Brian Eckhouse, who covers the solar industry for Bloomberg, about who wins and who loses from the 30 percent tariff President Trump has imposed on solar imports.

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5 Workers Are Missing After An Explosion At Oklahoma Drilling Rig

10:13am January 23, 2018

by Doreen McCallister

One worker was taken to a hospital and 16 others made it out of the area safely. The fire was put out Monday night but rescue workers can't search for the missing until the site cools down.

What's Really The Biggest Threat To The Coal Industry

5:33pm January 18, 2018

by Stacey Vanek Smith

President Trump has talked about a war on coal. He also talks about job killing regulations on coal. He's right that the coal industry is in decline, but the biggest threat isn't regulation, it's the free market.

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Robert Murray of Murray Energy (right) meets with Energy Secretary Rick Perry at the Department of Energy headquarters in Washington in a March 29, 2017, photo obtained by The Associated Press.

Photographer Says He Lost His Job After Leaking Pictures Of Rick Perry And Coal CEO

11:08am January 18, 2018

by Scott Neuman

Former Department of Energy photographer Simon Edelman is filing a federal whistleblower suit after he leaked the photos of a private meeting between the energy secretary and Robert Murray.

Astronomers have discovered a star, shown in an artist's rendition, that appears to be orbiting an invisible black hole with about four times the mass of the sun.

Science

Black Holes: Where Reality Beats Fiction

5:52pm January 17, 2018

by Marcelo Gleiser

We know that at the heart of pretty much every galaxy, there is a giant black hole. There is a lot that we know about black holes — and a lot that we don't know, says astrophysicist Marcelo Gleiser.