"Good Day, Sunshine!" Without it, we would all perish! There are many ways solar energy is utilized to make commercial buildings, private homes and entire eco-villages more efficient, comfortable, and pleasant. Solar energy is quickly becoming a viable resource for our everyday needs.
Our goal is to understand what is involved in developing a new economy that utilizes the sun's energy. Because education is the key to a sustainable shift to solar energy, entrepreneurs and contractors in the field will address the obstacles, upfront costs, maintenance and practical questions of installing a solar electric system. Let's have some fun with the sun! Please contribute your ideas and questions to: offthegrid@voiceyourself.com.
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Tour shines light on energy use
Solar tours encourage sustainablity.
As the stock market plummets, some area residents are turning to solar power to meet their economic and environmental needs. "If you look at rates from the last five years, they've almost doubled," said Mike Lindberg, chairman of the Wilton Energy Commission. "They will continue to increase at double-digit rates, so anyone that has any interest in solar power would be wise to do so now." Lindberg, a Wilton resident who uses solar power in his home, is not alone. Fairfield County has 141 approved or completed solar projects for residents and businesses, according to the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund. There are 751 approved or completed projects in the state.
By Patrick McNamee - The Stamford Acvocate | Stamford, CT , October 05, 2008
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Solar For the People
1 Block Off the Grid.
Homeowners contemplating going solar usually run into one of two obstacles: the expense of a solar power system or the sheer confusion involved in figuring out what rebates apply and what system to use. A new organization, 1BOG (“One Block off the Grid”), is trying to take some of the pain out of both challenges. Launched in San Francisco earlier this year, 1BOG is organizing groups of consumers to collectively purchase solar energy systems. This summer, their first round of community purchasing slashed the price of solar, including materials and installation, by 43 percent — even after accounting for federal, state, and local rebates. 1BOG is currently in the process of expanding to 11 other cities, including Los Angeles, San Diego and Denver.
By E.B. Boyd - Common Ground Magazine | San Francisco , October 01, 2008
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Switch to solar power pays off- eventually
Solar panels on West Meade home.
All the talk of photovoltaic cells and kilowatt-hours may seem confusing, but solar power can be one of the easiest methods to make your home green. And rooftop solar panels, which convert light from the sun into electricity, are finally taking hold in the Nashville area thanks to a pilot program run by power provider TVA, which allows solar power users to tie their systems into the power grid, and an installer in Nashville. Once homeowners install solar panels, which are made of photovoltaic cells, they can generate much of the power needed when the sun is blazing. After the sun sets, the TV, lamps, refrigerator and other electronic gizmos get juiced by the mostly coal-fired electricity from the power grid.
By Bonna Johnson - The Tennessean | Knoxville, TN , September 22, 2008
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Silicon Valley firm turns parking lot into solar power plant
Applied Materials parking lot.
Applied Materials, a Silicon Valley firm that makes the equipment used to manufacture semiconductor chips and, more recently, photovoltaic systems, says it is now generating more than 10 percent of its own electricity from a solar array over a parking lot at its Sunnyvale headquarters. Applied said its system uses 7,997 solar panels to produce 2.1 megawatts of electricty, enough to power about 1,400 homes, and described it as "the largest solar power deployment at a corporate facility in the United States."
The San Francisco Chronicle , September 20, 2008
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State regulator: Solar power hot, fossil fuels not
Solar is getting cheaper than fossil fuels.
The state needs to move toward solar power to help lower energy costs and secure a future that lessens a reliance on fossil fuels, a regulator said Tuesday. "The word is that the days of cheap, abundant energy are gone," said state Board of Public Utilities Commissioner Joseph L. Fiordaliso. "For our national security, for our economic well-being, not only as a state, but as a nation, we need to wean ourselves off our dependency on fossil fuels." Fueled by state incentives, New Jersey has grown to have the highest number of solar power installations in the U.S. after California.
By David P. Willis - The Asbury Park Press | New Jersey , September 17, 2008
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12 Year old student William Yuan.
A new invention could revolutionize solar energy – and it was made by a 12-year-old in Beaverton. Despite his age, William Yuan has already studied nuclear fusion and nanotechnology, and he is on his way to solving the energy crisis. It all started with Legos - after he learned nanotechnology to make robots take off. The seventh grader then got an idea inspired by the sun. "Solar it seems underused, and there are only a few problems with it," Yuan said.
By Susan Harding - KATU.com YouNewsTV | Beaverton, OR , September 16, 2008
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Experiment Boosts Hopes for Space Solar Power
A solar power satellite in Earth orbit.
A former NASA scientist has used radio waves to transmit solar power a distance of 92 miles between two Hawaiian islands, an achievement that he says proves the technology exists to beam solar power from satellites back to Earth. John C. Mankins demonstrated the solar power transmission for the Discovery Channel, which paid for the four month experiment and will broadcast the results Friday at 9 p.m. EDT. His vision is to transmit solar power collected by orbiting satellites as large as 1,102 pounds to lake-sized receiver stations on Earth.
By Becky Lannotta - LiveScience.com , September 12, 2008
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Nation Switches On to Solar Power
Namibia's solar potential.
The huge increases in electricity tariffs and soaring fuel prices experienced recently are causing many Namibians to rethink their energy needs and where to cut costs in order to save money as southern Africa is also experiencing a power crunch due to increased demand for electricity against dwindling supply capacity. Namibia has one of the best solar regimes in the world with some 3,300 hours of sunshine per year. This gives it a potential average annual solar radiation value exceeding six kilowatt hours per square metre per day.
By Brigitte Weidlich - AllAfrica.com | The Namibian , September 05, 2008
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For Retirement Savings, Solar Power Is a Better Bet Than the...
Newt Stevens' solar vehicle.
Of the 30,000 people who live in Phoenix's Sun City West retirement community, there are two senior citizens who have a particular affection for the sun -- even the scorching, 107-degree heat it brings to Arizona's dog days of summer. Apparently, the affection is reciprocal. Through photovoltaic and solar thermal technologies, the sun is bringing the eighty-something couple noteworthy financial and social rewards. The celebrated early-adopter octogenarians -- Newt and Inez Stevens -- moved to Phoenix from Alamosa, Colorado this past November to provide Inez with a lower elevation and a more temperate climate.
By Terri Steele - The Daily Green.com , September 02, 2008
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Giant Retailers Look to Sun for Energy Savings
Commerical application of solar.
Retailers are typically obsessed with what to put under their roofs, not on them. Yet the nation’s biggest store chains are coming to see their immense, flat roofs as an untapped resource. In recent months, chains including Wal-Mart Stores, Kohl’s, Safeway and Whole Foods Market have installed solar panels on roofs of their stores to generate electricity on a large scale. One reason they are racing is to beat a Dec. 31 deadline to gain tax advantages for these projects.
By Stephanie Rosenbloom - The New York Times , August 11, 2008
