Texas is one of the sunniest states in the country, giving it an enormous amount of untapped solar potential. The state is also known for its oil production. However, many people don't know that the amount of sunshine Texas gets each month contains more potential energy than all of the oil ever pumped in the state? Despite having the highest solar potential in the country, Texas only ranks tenth
A new report from IHS Inc. forecasts that global photovoltaic installations will exceed 40 GW for the first time in 2014. This dramatic spike in solar installation growth will generate more than $86 billion in revenue. After a two-year slowdown, annual solar installations will reach 41 GW in 2014. IHS maintains its earlier prediction that installations in 2013 will total 35 GW. The new report says that PV installations
Solar installers and businesses can sometimes have difficulties keeping track of all their jobs. The admin work required to keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes is often underestimated. The Clean Energy Council seeks to make things easier for these businesses through its new Solar Checklist app on iPhone. The app purportedly keeps track of all their jobs, allowing installers to focus on providing high-quality installation work by cutting
Tesla Motors, an electric car manufacturer, has recently opened its first international Superchargers in Norway. Tesla's Superchargers allow a Tesla battery to recharge halfway in one hour. The Supercharger network is an essential tool to eliminate the range anxiety that many people experience with electric cars. Tesla plans to continue the rapid expansion of its Supercharger network. Tesla Superchargers Outside of the US Norway is the first country outside of
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Conservation of Natural Resources To conserve the usage of natural Texas resources, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TWPD) recently installed 18 solar photovoltaic panel array systems across Texas. They range from a 5kW array thru 92kW array on the Austin Headquarters (Texas Solar Power Parks). The energy generated by these arrays typically supplies about 20% of facility power needs and supplements the Texas grid,
One of the concerns that many people have about installing solar panels or solar attic fans is whether they will ever need to clean them. A recently released study by engineers at the University of California at San Diego, that can be found here, shows that even in the harshest, dusty climates with minimal rain, dust will only create a minimal effect on solar efficiency, and in almost all cases,
While it is typical to hear news of worldwide solar installations in the United States and other highly developed counties, today we hear news of solar photovoltaic panels being installed all around Central America. With the high cost of electricity and an underdeveloped electric grid, consumers in these countries are buying up unsubsidized solar panels and installing them though out the region. We are always happy to see countries worldwide
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
