Solar Power

Julie Cart writes about the solar power compromises being forged in the deserts of the American Southwest, where the landscape is being sacrificed on the altar of alternative energy.

A German led initiative called 'Desertec,' aims to provide 15% of Europe's electricity by 2050 through a vast network of solar and wind farms stretching right across the MENA region and connecting to Europe via direct current transmission cables.

In its 5th year, the Solar Decathlon had submissions from 20 different countries and from schools like SCI-Arc/Caltech's and Appalachian State University, writes Diana Budds for Dwell.

Jennifer Runyon asks if environmentalists are doing the right thing by pushing regulations that make the cost of building renewable energy projects prohibitive.

The President went out of his way to support Solyndra's cutting-edge solar technology. When the company declares bankruptcy this week, Jon Stewart anticipates the gaffes by Obama's opposition in a very funny segment on The Daily Show.

Cargohopper is a transportation system in Utrecht, the fourth largest Dutch city, that aims to replace freight trucks entering the city core. Electric trucks powered by solar panels take cargo from freight trucks to retailers in the city.

Environmental opposition to large solar and wind projects in the desert usually based on their biological impacts has long baffled many renewable power advocates. CA Gov. Jerry Brown expressed support for the alternative, 'distributed generation'.

At a two-acre site located 80 miles west of Ann Arbor, an engineering major at the Univ. of Michigan installed the state's largest solar farm with movable trackers that increase the amount of energy captured by almost 10%.

The Economist argues that heavy reliance on solar power as an alternative energy source will not help Britain meet its greenhouse-gas reduction targets in 2050 due to operational and financial infeasibilities.

With a major push by the federal government to achieve 80% clean energy by 2035, the California Energy Commission is moving quickly to approve permits. Sensitive Native cultural sites are threatened by the speedy process, say many involved.

In Napa Valley, California, land is at a premium. Startup solar companies saw potential in underused bodies of water and developed floating solar panel arrays to meet the need.

Cities across the country are re-utilizing brownfield sites as solar farms.

Regulators have approved the construction of 9 large solar power plants in California, but many are facing opposition from local Native American tribes who say that the environmental and cultural impacts were not fully considered.

Utilizing skilled labor forces, existing manufacturing facilities and generous public incentives, Michigan and Ohio are becoming solar power leaders.

The California city spent years cultivating an urban forest for shade and cooling benefits, which now presents a unique challenge to tapping the area's solar potential. A new company has a solution.

Federal incentives have set off a rush to get solar power plants permitted for the California deserts. Plants approved before January could cover a combined 53 square square miles. Clean energy fans are happy. Desert tortoises, not so much.

A new report shows that solar panel installation has increased to record levels in 2010. Throughout the first half of 2010, 339 megawatts of grid-connected solar capacity were installed.

Chemical engineers at MIT were recently able to create solar energy that is 100 times more concentrated than that created by a conventional photovoltaic cell. The secret? Carbon nanotubes.

A renewable energy company wants to build a major solar power farm on former ranchland in rural California. But environmental concerns over habitat and scenic beauty could stall the process.

"Nine projects in California are making their way through the Bureau of Land Management's fast-track program which, if completed, will bring over 4,500 megawatts worth of generating capacity onto the grid."