The world's largest solar energy plant, the Ivanpah Solar Plant, located in the Ivanpah Valley of California’s Mojave Desert, is nearing completion. When completed, the solar plant will contain 170,000 mirrors and produce 377 megawatts (MW) of power, more than double the previous record holder of 150 MW, and enough to power more than 140,000 homes. We hope that renewable energy megaprojects such as this one will lead to
When you think of the word’s largest power plants, you probably don’t think renewable energy. However, we can thank hydroelectric--the often forgotten renewable resource--for the world’s four largest power plants. In the graph on the left, you can see how dominant hydroelectric is compared to other renewable resources. We should be excited about the great growth in solar and wind recently but must not forget about our largest renewable resource,
Reviewing the solar panels on the Solar Impulse--the solar plane currently flying across the country--allows us to look at solar efficiency in a new way that not only could affect solar flight but also ceiling exhaust fans and roof fans. The solar panels on the plane are not the best at converting light energy into electric power by the area covered but do excel in terms of weight. The lightweight
According to a report by U.S. Solar Market Insight, the US had a record first quarter with 723 MW of solar photovoltaics installed in Q1 2013. This represents a 33 percent increase over Q1 2012 and brings the cumulative US photovoltaic capacity to 7.9 gigawatts. This growth was led by residential installations, which experienced a 53% increase over the same period. Prices for residential systems fell below five dollars a
While photovoltaic cells are certainly one of the best ways to produce clean energy, from a scientific perspective they are actually quite inefficient. In the average solar cell, only about 20% of the solar energy is transferred into usable electricity. This is in contrast to photosynthesis performed by plants, which reaches efficiencies of 95 percent. While in the past, we knew very little about how plants reached these efficiencies, new
Solar Advantages Tesla debutes Tesla Motors has introduced a system is says will allow a swap of a car's battery pack in less time than it takes to fill up a traditional car's gas tank. At a demonstration of the system in California, Tesla chief Elon Musk said battery swap stations will be installed throughout a network of "supercharging" stations the company is installing around the nation, CNN reported Friday.
Solar Energy Advantages: Solar Phone Chargers As reported by ABCNEWS: Following Hurricane Sandy, you would find citizens of New York City and other affected areas waiting in long lines outside Starbucks and other restaurants are not waiting to buy food, but vying for a chance to charge their cell phones. The city of New York is attempting to prepare for its next emergency by installing solar-powered low draw phone chargers
Its mission to build stronger relationships between scientists, entrepreneurs, and innovators in Massachusetts and Switzerland, Swissnex Boston is welcoming the world's largest solar-powered boat to Boston's Fan Pier for its inaugural visit, June 22-26. The first boat to travel around the world exclusively powered by solar energy, the MS Turanor PlanetSolar features 29,160 solar panels and produces zero gasoline or CO2 emissions. Swissnex's Purpose The boat is currently carrying out
MITs Solar System MIT scientists mapped 17,000 rooftops in Cambridge, Mass., providing residents with a web interface to look up their homes and project the cost and return on investment of photovoltaic solar panels. Using satellite imagery and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data from a previous aerial survey to create a 3-D model of Cambridge. Then the team from MIT charted the exact shape of rooftops and possible sunlight
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced Tuesday the approval of three major renewable energy projects in Arizona and Nevada delivering up to 520 MW of renewable energy. What Are the Renewable Energy Projects? The three projects are the 350 MW Midland Solar Energy Project near Boulder City, Nevada, the 70 MW New York Canyon Geothermal Project, near Lovelock, Nevada, and the 100 MW Quartzsite Solar Energy Project, located
