Hydrogen energy; the 35th anniversary of the Hindenburg Society

It is noteworthy that this is the 35th anniversary of the Hindenburg Society, formed in 1972 to promote the use of hydrogen as a vehicular fuel, and so named - on the 35th anniversary of the Hindenburg disaster - to underscore the awareness of the possible dangers of hydrogen energy. The motivations for a hydrogen vehicular fuel system have only grown in the intervening years, and, with the evolution of fuel cells and the hybrid vehicle concept, become even more attractive. None of the energy alternatives to fossil fuels - nuclear, solar, wind, geothermal, etc. - are directly usable for vehicular applications. As an energy carrier, hydrogen has a much higher energy per unit mass than storage batteries or other options. The advantages of hydrogen as a vehicular and jet aircraft fuel, and a possible evolution to a hydrogen fuel economy will be discussed.