An iconic American pick-up truck is going electric, and that's not even the most noteworthy bit of energy news this month

[View this email in your browser]( [Open Ars Technica in your browser]( "This is truly a knife in the fossil fuel industry” is not a common way to describe climate change reports from global energy agencies. But the International Energy Agency is a relatively conservative agency—specifically, this group has consistently underestimated the growth of wind and solar power, in part because the agency takes a cautious approach to modeling by assuming linear rather than exponential growth (as is often the case with new technologies) and forecasting based on current climate policies rather than more aggressive targets. And yet, even [the IEA now sees a dire current state of affairs]( for global energy usage: we’re highly, highly unlikely to hit society's net zero goals by 2050. In fact, the IEA says if countries stick to the voluntary contributions they’ve currently put forth to honor the Paris Agreement, we’re heading for more than 2˚C warming by 2100. (Bending the curve down to 1.5˚C would instead require overhauling just about every sector of the economy, hence the IEA estimating a $4 trillion annual investment.) If global leaders started following the report’s recommendations to hit 1.5˚C tomorrow, the most significant—and immediate—impact would be the cessation of all new fossil fuel projects starting next year. This is just the latest effort to quantify what anyone following energy and Earth science closely has known for a while: We've completely flubbed this effort to date, humanity. But even if the longterm outlook still appears grim, there are minor energy victories worth celebrating in the short term. For this week's Orbital Transmission, we're sharing a few of those—from the most diesel of vehicles seeing the (electric) light to the important energy progress most of us aren't paying attention to. Maybe we're not quite ready to [fuel international travel through global waste](, but society isn't giving up lofty net zero energy ambitions yet, either. —[Nathan Mattise]( Dealmaster's Deal of the Week Dealmaster's Deal of the Week Logitech G305 Lightspeed for $40 at Amazon (normally $45) For PC gamers on a budget, Logitech's G305 Lightspeed is [our preferred pick]( for a wireless gaming mouse under $50. This deal brings the device only $5 above the lowest price we've tracked. Also at [Adorama](. [$40 at Amazon]( Orbital Transmission 05.26.2021 Orbital Transmission 05.26.2021 [(image) ]( Who needs a revolution? Batteries are getting better all the time [Read Full Story »]( Who needs a revolution? Batteries are getting better all the time Everyone wants a revolution when it comes to batteries (cue the readers shouting, "Cold fuuuuusssssiiiiooon!"). But quietly, the most popular battery format today (lithium-ion batteries) has been steadily improving for years. The approach may not garner headlines and may build slowly off disparate innovations, but no one can deny the results if you stop and look. Gains in the amount of energy lithium ion batteries can store have been on the order of five percent per year, which means that the capacity of your current batteries is over 1.5 times what they would have held a decade ago. For one application of this that impacts your wallet: the average price of a complete battery pack for an electric vehicle was about $1,180 per kilowatt-hour in 2010. By 2020, it was down to around $130 per kilowatt-hour. [Read Full Story »]( [(image) ]( Ford finally strikes and reveals the highly anticipated, all-electric F-150 Lightning [Read Full Story »]( Ford finally strikes and reveals the highly anticipated, all-electric F-150 Lightning Say the word "truck," and Ford's F-150 may be the first thing that comes to mind for most Americans. So there may be no bigger sign of electric vehicles as our future than Ford realizing even the iconic pickup needs to run on battery in 2021. The company finally unveiled its hotly anticipated battery-electric version of Ford's bestselling vehicle last week. The F-150 Lightning will go on sale in mid-2022, and its debut is potentially so monumental that US President Joe Biden was on hand to give the world an impromptu demo of the vehicle's acceleration (it gets from 0 to 60mph in four seconds, if curious). Specs and pricing will vary, but the 300-mile extended-range version will [cost $49,974 before tax incentives](. [Read Full Story »]( [(image) ]( Texas ran low on natural gas days before historical winter disaster—and officials knew it [Read Full Story »]( Texas ran low on natural gas days before historical winter disaster—and officials knew it Unfortunately, one of the most notable energy stories of the last week (of the entire year, tbh) has almost nothing positive about it. Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s office knew of the state's looming natural gas shortages on February 10, days before a deep freeze plunged much of the state into blackouts, according to documents obtained by E&E News and reviewed by Ars. After the blackouts began, however, Abbott appeared on Fox News to falsely assert that green energy, specifically wind turbines, were the driving force behind the outages. The results of such blatant disregard for reality speaks for itself: thousands in Texas went without energy for days, many are still recovering from lost property, and the Texas Department of Health and Human Services reports 151 people died from causes related to the disaster to date. [Read Full Story »]( [(image) ]( What matters in tech, in your inbox every morning. [Read Full Story »]( What matters in tech, in your inbox every morning. Source Code is Protocol’s daily tech newsletter, giving you an inside view of a fast-moving industry. David Pierce and Source Code will keep you ahead of the competition so you can start your day briefed on the people, power and politics of tech. You’re busy; let us help. [Sign up here](. #Sponsored [Read Full Story »]( [(image) Condé Nast Spotlight | The breaking news and top stories everyone is talking about. All in one place. The most popular stories from Vogue, GQ, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Wired, Architectural Digest and more. STAY INFORMED]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Copyright © 2021 Condé Nast, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Condé Nast One World Trade Center New York, NY 10007 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can [update your preferences](newsletter=ars) or [unsubscribe from this list](newsletter=ars).