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For all the excitement over low cost solar power, much of it is still in the development stage backed by government resources and has yet to prove that it can compete on the market with cheap fossil fuels. However some private investors are starting to bet on low cost solar in a big way. Among them is tech specialist Len Batterson, whose startup NextGen Solar is kicking into gear. NextGen......read more
Damn you, solar energy. How badly we want you to power our homes. How clearly we don't have the tens of thousands of dollars we need to make it happen. Renewable, abundant solar energy may power the future but for now, only green-minded millionaires can afford it. Or so we thought. In fact, Photovoltaic panels are getting smaller, cheaper, and more efficient. Installation costs are declining......read more
The Turanor is a 98-foot catamaran powered by an array of solar panels large enough to cover two tennis courts. There are big plans for this futuristic craft; next spring it will attempt a circumnavigation of the planet. According to the vessel's skipper, the purpose of the mission is to prove that "we have the technology right now to change how we do things." In other words, this......read more
A small town on the border of the Mojave Desert is the new leader in solar energy. Nipton, California, a town of about 250 people, gets 85% of its electricity from a new 80 kilowatt solar project. This proves that renewable energy technology is already advanced enough to power our homes and lives, albeit maybe just in small towns for now. But the possibilities are endless, and as a gateway......read more
On the Camp Lejeune Marine Corps base in North Carolina, families are turning to solar panels to heat the water in their homes. Eventually, 900 homes on the military base will have the shiny reflective panels on the roof. By transfering heat via pipes to a water tank that reaches temperatures of 180 degrees fahrenheit, the solar panels can heat around 75% of the water used by families living on......read more
The EU, which says it will meet 20% of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2020, gets set to switch on solar power in the Sahara Desert. Vertical agriculture takes off: 11 "farmscrapers" that build on the success of living walls and mobile gardens. A fake oil spill was staged at the Tate in London, as BP protestors railed against the unholy alliance between oil companies and......read more
Some welcome news from Washington, as President Obama announced Saturday that the federal government will provide nearly $2 billion in loan guarantees for new projects by two solar power companies. As many as 5,000 green jobs will be created by the guarantees, which are to be covered by money from the $787 billion Recovery Act stimulus package. Colorado-based Abengoa Solar, a division of Spanish......read more
An experimental airplane with 12,000 solar cells and the wing span of a Boeing 777 passenger jet completed its first test flight of more than 24 hours on Thursday, proving that the aircraft can collect enough energy from the sun during the day to stay aloft all night. Pilot and project co-founder Andre Borschberg flew the Solar Impulse to 28,000 feet above the Jura Mountains, reaching top speeds......read more
Plug and play: The Yves Behar-designed GE WattStation will juice up electric vehicles and spruce up the streets. Oh, the humanity! When Humans Ruled the Earth explores the human consumption machine in animated form. An efficient water solution in the rural West: Farmers and ranchers are replacing windmills with solar power wells. Want to take an exotic holiday AND help the environment? Try one......read more
Now, this is getting space-agey. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency says it has put solar panels on a spacecraft, which not only create power but they actively propel and maneuver it through space. The "Ikaros" solar sail absorbs photons from the sun that put pressure onto the solar sails reflective panels and propel the 700 pound craft. Ikaros is bound for an orbit around......read more
