According to GPUpdate.net:

Having switched from GP2 with Ocean Racing Technology to F1 with Virgin for 2010, Parente’s relationship with the latter fell through when key sponsor the Tourism Institute of Portugal failed to complete payments to the Sheffield-based outfit.

At this time, it’s unclear whether Parente will continue racing in GP2 for the rest of the season, or if this is a one-off opportunity. The Scuderia Coloni press release quoted Parente saying, “I race at Spa-Francorchamps, after that we will see what happens.”

Read more @ Parente returns to GP2 by replacing Valerio on GPUpdate.net

And @ Álvaro Parente back to GP2 with Coloni on GP2Series.com

More about Scuderia Coloni, plus Parente’s career highlights @ ScuderiaColoni.com

Fernando Alonso victorious at Hockenheimring

The FIA decided to fine Ferrari $100,000 for giving illegal “team orders” to Felipe Massa, asking him to let Alonso pass, which he did in the 46th lap.  Such team orders were banned 8 years ago, after Ferrari told Rubens Barrichello to allow Michael Schumacher to pass during the Austrian Grand Prix in 2002. But Ferrari continues to use the technique, despite the ban – as seen in the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix between Massa and Kimi Räikkönen.  Some feel the incident at Hockenheim today was as clear of a violation as the one in 2002.

Massa & Alonso At Hockenheimring

(Click to see full size images)

[Team Orders according to wikipedia:
...generally done when one driver is behind in a particular race but ahead overall in a championship season. The team will then order their drivers to rearrange themselves on the track so as to give the championship points to the driver who needs them most.]

The World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) will also be investigating this incident and could potentially strip Ferrari, Massa and Alonso of the 1st and 2nd places they won today.

More info available @ CNN.com and Formula1.com:

Ferrari fined as Alonso denies Massa in Hockenheim controversy – CNN

Ferrari fined, referred to WMSC over team order allegations – Formula 1

Watch the race online (streaming video) at Youku.com:
2010 Round 10 German Grand Prix Race on Youku

German GP Results

1. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari
2. Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari
3. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull
4. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren
5. Jenson Button (GB) McLaren
6. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull
7. Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault
8. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes GP
9. Michael Schumacher (Ger) Mercedes
10. Vitaly Petrov (Russia) Renault

Formula1.com has the complete results and Speed TV has the complete online Racecast (minus actual video of the race however).

Complete Grand Prix Championship Standings Thus Far

Drivers’ Championship (after 11 rounds)

1. Lewis Hamilton (GB) McLaren 157 points
2. Jenson Button (GB) McLaren 143
3. Mark Webber (Aus) Red Bull 136
4. Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Red Bull 136
5. Fernando Alonso (Spa) Ferrari 123
6. Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes GP 94
7. Robert Kubica (Pol) Renault 89
8. Felipe Massa (Bra) Ferrari 85
9. Michael Schumacher (Ger) Mercedes 38
10. Adrian Sutil (Ger) Force India 35

Constructors’ Championship

1. McLaren 300 points
2. Red Bull 278
3. Ferrari 208
4. Mercedes GP 132
5. Renault 96
6. Force India 47
7. Williams 31
8. Sauber 15
9. Toro Rosso 10

Tesla Motors

According to CarScoop:

Tesla hopes to build as many as 20,000 units per year in the southern California facility that’s capable of building one million units annually.

Other than some potential spin-offs using the Model S platform (like an electric GT), there’s a lot of capacity. That’s where Toyota steps in. Toyota and Tesla will be working together to develop electric vehicles. their parts, and the engineering behind them.

Read more @ “Tesla Partners Up with Toyota to Develop EVs, Acquires NUMMI Plant” on CarScoop.

Respect to the photographer - gorgeous!

Updated passenger information is available on Heathrow’s website which also recommends checking airline sites for specific info:

Heathrow Airport is open. However, the volcanic ash cloud coming from Iceland continues to cause occasional problems and passengers are therefore advised to check their airline website for the latest travel information.

Get more Heathrow Airport updates @ BAA Heathrow Airport website.

Read more about the Eyjafjallajokull volcano and which airports are affected this week @ Iceland volcano forces flight delays, airport closures in Ireland, England, Scotland; Heathrow open on the SF Examiner website.

Video News Report On The Ash Cloud & Airport Closures

Illustration of what X37b can do in orbit

The Pentagon has set April 21 as the date for the launch of the robotic space plane known as the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle (OTV), which is a reusable unmanned plane capable of long outer space missions at low orbits.

Since the nature of the project is shrouded in mystery, defense analysts allege that the US military is building the first generation of US ‘space Predator drones’ that will build up the United States’ space armada …

That’s from Iran’s PressTV website – US to launch secret ‘space warplane’

You’ll find lots more technical details @ Secret Military Space Plane Primed For Test Launch on SPACE.com – like these:

The 29-foot-long, 15-foot-wide Orbital Test Vehicle arrived in Cape Canaveral, Fla., last month according to the Air Force. The OTV spaceplane was built at a Boeing Phantom Works facility in Southern California. …

The reusable spacecraft is more famously known as the X-37B. The design is based on the orbital and re-entry demonstrator initially developed by NASA, then handed over to the Pentagon. …

The X-37B’s mission is to “demonstrate a reliable, reusable, unmanned space test platform for the United States Air Force,” the military fact sheet says. “Objectives of the OTV program include space experimentation, risk reduction and concept of operations development for reusable space vehicle technologies.”

At the end of its mission, the X-37B will fire its engine and drop from orbit, autonomously navigating through a fiery re-entry on the way to its 15,000-foot-long primary runway at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Edwards Air Force Base is the backup landing site.

Shady enuff for ya?

AP photo by Brynjar Gaudi

A report on Sky News claims:

The ash will continue to be directed towards Britain and Scandinavia, according to the Icelandic Meteorological Office.

Meanwhile, test flights at lower altitude than usual are taking place in the Netherlands and other European countries to assess the impact of volcanic ash on planes.

Here’s epic new video of the steam plume and ash cloud expanding as the volcano erupted:

In the same article, Chris MacLeod, a professor of volcanology at Cardiff U, points out: “The last recorded eruption of Eyjafjallajokull lasted over a year, but we don’t know if it was as intense as this eruption.”

The article also reveals that another, potentially more deadly volcano exists nearby Eyjafjallajokull (and it’s name is much easier to say/remember!):

“The big fear here is that the nearby sister volcano Katla could erupt.

“It is much bigger, the flooding would be worse and the ash cloud would also be much worse.”

All in all a thorough report on what’s happening, more details at the source: Sky News on Sky.com

Gritty, caustic ash from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano continues to drift across parts of Britain and Northern Europe today.  The ash is so damaging to moving mechanical parts that air traffic had to be grounded at international airports in Europe and UK.  As of Thursday night, 11 of 16 international airports in Germany – including Berlin, Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg and Dusseldorf – had halted all flights.  This morning, we’re receiving reports that flights between Asia and Europe have also been stopped indefinitely.

AP photo taken by Brynjar Gaudi

However vast and mighty the destruction seems at this point, it probably won’t affect temperatures on a global scale (which does happen when enuff ash blocks the sun for a long enuff period of time).  Sun reporter Frank Roylance blogged:

Such things are possible. The eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, in the Philippines in 1991 had a chilling effect on global temperatures (about 0.7 degree F globally) and caused gaudy sunsets around the world. Eruption of the Tambora volcano in Indonesia in 1815 caused catastrophic changes in the world’s weather cycles, leading to what was called “The Year Without a Summer” in Europe and North America in 1816.

[And let's not forget Mt. Vesuvius which erupted for 2 whole days in 79 A.D. which not only blocked out the sun, but completely buried Pompeii for 1600 years. Of course, that may have been the work of the infamous Doctor Who as seen in "The Fires of Pompeii" in series 4...]

Read more @ Iceland volcano’s ash plume seen from space on Maryland Weather.com

That article includes links to satellite images of the steam plume and ash cloud as seen from space.

Ford says the 6.7-liter Power Stroke V-8 for its 2011 Ford F-Series Super Duty will “pound out 390 horsepower and 735 pounds-feet of torque” while GM says its 6.6-liter Duramax V-8 diesel for the 2011 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra HD pickups will make 397 hp and 765 pounds-feet of torque…

Sounds like GM is ahead by a few nosehairs, right?  What I didn’t know until today is this little, yet significant, gem:

The 6.7-liter PSD is a clean-sheet design with lots of headroom for higher power settings, while the 6.6-liter Duramax is based on a legacy architecture that’s right at the limit of its performance envelope.

Oh really? This pushes Ford way out in front in my book. I’ve worked on enuff engines at the “limit of their performance envelope” to know, that no matter how great they once were, they’re a pale shadow of what comes next.

Read the full story @ Ford Plans Power Increase for Power Stroke V-8 Diesel on PickupTrucks.com

Ford's cleanest diesel engine

But what’s this about a cleaner diesel engine by Ford? Ford doesn’t even design its own engines anymore, right? I was curious, so I dug deeper and this is what I found – hold tight!

According to another article on PickupTrucks.com, Adam Gryglak (the lead engineer of the new Power Stroke diesel engine) says, “This is the most advanced Power Stroke yet with the cleanest emissions,” lower noise, vibration, harshness “and substantially improved power and fuel economy.”

The article continues:

Codenamed “Scorpion,” the 6.7-liter PSD is Ford’s first-ever designed-in-house pickup truck diesel engine since the first oil burner (International’s 6.9-liter V-8) was offered under the hood of a Ford pickup in 1982.

Now that is a big deal! One more really interesting factoid – this engine is manufactured in Ford’s plant in Mexico. Presumably the same factory in Mexico that built the legendary Ford 302 BOSS engines – some would say Ford’s finest performance engine ever built. Of course, the trucks are available now. I’ll keep my eye out for one and do a follow up with pix if I find one…

The rest of the article spells out all the super cool features of how the engine is designed including reversed flow of intake and exhaust, new Single Sequential Turbocharger, two separate cooling systems, each with its own radiator and water pump and loads more juicy details!!! There’s like 3 weeks of vocational school education packed in, so it’s a must read:

Get the all the specific technical details about the engine @ First Look: Ford’s All-New 6.7-Liter V-8 Power Stroke Diesel Engine on PickupTrucks.com

a GMC C/K pickup (pic originally from wikipedia)

Here’s the basic design flaw in a nutshell:

For marketing reasons, the trucks had an unusual design feature. GM wanted to offer 40 gallons of fuel capacity, but there was no place to mount a tank that big. So it offered twin 20 gallon tanks, each nearly 5 feet long, two explosive containers hanging like saddle bags outside the truck’s protective frame. Even after decades, that choice still resonates in the courts, in the lives of bereaved families and in the disfiguring scars of survivors.

Near the middle, the article gets more specific about fatalities:

According to a federal database, following the government’s settlement with GM the side-saddle trucks were involved in nearly 400 fatal crashes with post-collision fires through 2008. However, the database, known as the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, attributed most deaths to the force of the collision and only 97 to explosions or fires.

Although autopsy reports provide the most authoritative information on cause of death, they rarely figure in FARS. Deaths by fire might be wrongly coded as caused by the impact or vice-versa. When NHTSA compared FARS codings of C/K pickup deaths with autopsies in 1994, it found that fire deaths were incorrectly attributed to crash forces more often than the other way around.

Accordingly, the estimate of at least 100 fire deaths since December 1994 seems conservative. It includes the 97 cases coded in FARS, along with 10 additional fatalities in which autopsies, police reports or witness statements reviewed by FairWarning indicated that victims survived the crash then died in the flames.

Read the full story @ “Old Trucks Leave Fiery Legacy, Smoldering Anger” on FairWarning.org

New look for Torrance Transit buses

The first two of the new buses, which will replace others that are more than 17 years old, are scheduled to hit city streets in March, said Transit Director Kim Turner.

Read more @ “Torrance buses going green inside and outside” on The Daily Breeze.com