In Newark, NJ, "Solstice" Built on Campus

       In Newark, New Jersey, the "Solstice," a charging station powered by the sun, is ready to renew the energy of the cell phones, laptops and other electronic devices used at Essex County College thanks to the efforts of a group of ECC students.
       Members of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and Solar Training class erected the station, mounted on a 9-foot pole outside the college's Center for Technology. It has one AC and two USB ports that allow charging of devices completely through solar energy. "We are primarily using it as a hands-on learning tool for both our students and area high school students," said professor Ravi Manimaran. He noted that the 14 students who participated in the installation had the chance to receive green industry-based training from professions as part of the hands-on project.

IKEA Selling Solar Panels!

         The Sweden-based company known as Ikea, best known for cheap basics such as its Billy bookcases and Ektorp sofas, plans to offer solar panel packages at all of its 17 British stores within the next 10 months. It said the move follows a successful pilot project at its Lakeside store to the east of London, which sells one photovoltaic system almost every day.
        Britain offers subsidies to encourage the takeup of photovoltaic panels in a bid to boost production and help it meet legally-binding targets to cut carbon emissions. A solar panel owner receives subsidies for generating solar-sourced electricity exporting excess power into the grid. An average semi-detached house would earn as much as $1,200 a year through subsidies and savings on energy bills, an IKEA case study showed.
      IKEA's offer of panels made by China's Hanergy Holding Group Ltd., a power producer and manufacturer of thin-film photovoltaic panels, involves a minimum spend of 5,700 pounds for which customers get 18 panels which should break even within roughly 7 years. "We know that our customers want to live more sustainably and we hope working with Hanergy to make solar panels affordable and easily available helps them do just that," said Joanna Yarrow, IKEA's head of sustainability in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

16-year-old Kelvin Doe -- Self-taught Inventor

          Kelvin Doe, a 16-year-old inventor from Sierra Leone, is known as the boy genius being both the youngest person to be awarded his country's presidential medal, and the youngest person ever offered a fellowship at MIT, where he spent a week as a visiting practitioner training MIT and Harvard undergraduates. He traveled 14 hours from Sierra Leone to attend the CGI conference this week.
          In middle school, the young boy would scavenge nearby trash yards in the capital of Freetown to find parts for his inventions. "I'd go to bed, then wake up after midnight," he told the audience with a laugh. "My mom would wake up most nights to see our living room transformed into a small electronic junkard." Doe had no formal engineering training, but he tinkered endlessly. "I just figured things out, just picked things and took them home and made things on my own. Sometimes it can take me a week, sometimes a month, but I just believe I can do it so I just keep on going."
          He first built small generators to solve what he views as his country's most pressing scarcity: electricity. "There was a problem affecting my community and I wanted to do something about it which was lack of transferred information from one community to another," he said. "I decided to a build a station for the people to be able to use to talk about issues, also educate people." After working as a radio engineer for his friends and neighbors, he'd pieced together enough skill and equipment to begin a radio station where he broadcast under the name DJ Focus. His inventive spirit only came under the spotlight when, just last year at age 15, he was discovered by a Sierra Leonean Ph.D. student at MIT during a high school innovation challenge.
           He is also currently working with Canadian provider Sierra Wifi to build solar panels and transmitters in all 400-odd schools and universities in Sierra Leone to power computers and bring Internet access to remote regions, all made possible by a $100,000 grant. Up next: a windmill prototype, which is a few months from being finished. "There are so many more problems I'd like to solve, how can human energy contribute to electricity."

A boy stands on a road at dawn in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on November 21, 2012

Japan Growing in Renewable Energy Sources

A man watches waves break into anti-tsunami barriers after a storm in Iwaki, Fukushima Prefecture on September 16, 2013. Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO), operator of the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, said on Monday it released what was believed to be untainted rainwater around the storage tank areas into the ocean in order to avoid flooding near the tanks due to heavy rains by Typhoon Man-yi

        According to new research released by NPD Solarbuzz, Japan has become one of only five countries to have achieved 10 gigawatts of cumulative solar capacity. While aiming to diversify its energy mix, Japan is developing its renewable energy sector, especially as it steers away from nuclear power following the disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power plant in 2011. The development of solar power in Japan slowed in the mid-2000s, partly due to a 10-year energy plan that favored nuclear power.
       With a shifting of focus toward renewable energy, and after a new law approving feed-in tariffs for renewable energy was passed last year, the Japanese government is giving incentives for the use of solar energy. The policy requires utility companies in Japan to buy electricity from renewable sources like solar and wind at a premium price for the next 20 years.

Silicon Energy and Outback Power Promote Solar Energy

Tim Nelson, of Fire Mountain Solar, discusses Silicon Energy's solar panels with area homeowner Ron Nichols at Silicon Energy's Marysville facility on September 21

     Two local companies, Silicon Energy in Marysville and Outback Power Technologies in Arlington, served as hub sites for this year's Snohomish County Solar Tour, whose informational walk-throughs on Saturday, September 21, were designed to answer the questions of area residents and prospective industry professionals.
      "We're trying to show local homeowners and contractors what's possible with solar power," said Phil Undercuffer, director of product management at Outback's recently opened facility just east of the Arlington Municipal Airport. "We want them to see the advantages of changing over to solar, and even the visitors we've had, who were already knowledgable about this field, weren't aware of a lot of the new technologies."
      Vice President of Arlington Electric, Russell Tilton, also claims that "only 1% of the state is on solar. Just because it's cloudy, people think that you can't rely on solar here, but we get more than enough sun. We get more sun than Germany, and they rely on solar more than anybody."

ConEdison Joining Solar Power

   Sempra U.S. Gas & Power and Consolidated Edison Development (ConEdison) became equal partners in two of Sempra U.S. Gas & Power's solar power facilities, the 150 megawatt Copper Mountain Solar 2 plant near Las Vegas and the 150 megawatt Mesquite Solar 1 plant near Phoenix. Under the terms of the joint-venture agreement, which was announced in May 2013, each company will own a 50% interest in each of the solar facilities. The terms of the transaction, however, were not disclosed.

      Mesquite Solar 1, the first phase of the Sempra U.S. Gas & Power's Mesquite Solar Power complex located in Arlington, Arizona, was completed in late 2012. Mesquite Solar 1 generates enough clean electricity for about 56,000 homes. Power from the facility has been fully sold to Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) under a 20-year contract. 

       The first phase of Copper Mountain Solar 2 is also complete and is currently generating 92 megawatts of solar power. When the second phase is fully constructed (expected in 2015), the project's total operating capacity will be 150 megawatts. The solar power plant generates enough clean energy to power about 45,000 homes. Power from the facility has also been fully sold to PG&E under a 25-year contract.

Utah's $600 Million Solar Power Plant Coming Soon!

        A multimillion dollar power plant will be soon built in Central Utah. The solar farm will be nestled near the small town of Delta, but it won't be generating clean energy for Utah. Instead, it will be sending its energy to California, but it'll prove to be a big boom for rural Utah's economy. At the same time, the Provo-based company contracted to do the project is placing the solar panels next to one of the worst polluters in the Western United States. Josh Case is the CEO of Energy Capitol Group, and he said that's a good location. 

       "We think we have the ideal location," he said. "We're adjacent to the Intermountain Power Plant and the transmission infrastructure and we're developing a 300 megawatt solar plant. We're leasing 1,754 acres from SITLA." The vacant landscape will become a sea of 800,000 solar panels spanning nearly 2,000 acres. Because the land belongs to SITLA, school children will also benefit from the energy harvested from the sun.

Millionaire Richard Darx Wants Solar Farm on Estate

      A millionaire, Richard Drax, has infuriated his neighbors with his plans to build an enormous solar farm on his estate. Last night actually, he was facing claims of hypocrisy after proposals to put scores of solar panels on 174 acres of his land were submitted to planners.
      Local residents have also claimed that three months ago, Mr. Drax had attacked plans to increase subsidies for wind turbines and solar panels. He also highly opposed a proposed wind farm off the Dorset coast. Therefore, surprisingly enough, he currently wants to build a solar farm the size of 110 football pitches on his 7,000-acre Charborough Estate.
      Sir Michael Butler, aged 86, is among more than 300 people who have written to the planning authority about the solar project. He says, "If this plan was to go ahead, it would be an absolute disaster. This is a most beautiful part of the British countryside and they want to stick this abomination in the middle of it."

Solar panels are planned for 174 acres of the sprawling Charborough Estate in Dorset

Washington Gas Solar-Powering California University

       Washington Gas Energy Systems, Inc. will own and operate a solar array at Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, California. Financial terms were not disclosed. However, "the facility will be opened and operated by Washington Gas Energy Systems, Inc. under a 20-year power purchase agreement," Washington Gas said. Green Energy Group LLC developed the project, which will be completed next month. 

       The roof-mounted system includes 2,688 solar panels on three campus buildings and will produce more than 1,100 megawatt hours of solar energy a year. Washington Gas Energy Systems, Inc., is actually a subsidiary of Washington Gas parent WGL Holdings, which owns commercial-scale projects in 10 states, including the largest solar photovoltaic panel system in the District, at Catholic University at America. 

City Hall Powered with Solar Panels

        By the end of this year, Rancho Mirage's City Hall and the city's vehicle maintenance yard should be getting most of their power from brand-new rooftop and carport solar panels. The City Council gave the go-ahead Monday to a $1.2 million contract with Palm Springs-based Nobell Energy Solutions to add the panels to the city facilities, with construction expected to begin in October and finish in mid-December.
        The council also approved spending $23,000 to put a new roof over the maintenance yard's traffic signal warehouse, which will be able to support the panels. The new panels, which will be leased by the city from Nobell for up to 20 years with an option to buy them out at 10 years, are projected to generate 60% of the electricity needed by City Hall and 95% for the maintenance yard, which is in Thousand Palms.

iPhone 6 May Have Solar Charging Capabilities?

       According to analysts, Apple's patented solar technology could be seen in the iPhone 6. In February 2013, Apple has also received patents for its innovation in using solar panels in mobile devices, such as the iPhone 6. The technology would have an integrated touch sensor with a solar panel. This technology allows Apple to "stack-up" touch sensors on top of solar cell layers. The electrodes that would be featured on the integrated panel can be used for collecting solar energy and for sensing on a touch sensor array.
       In terms of hardware, the iPhone 6 is expected to have a quad-core processor with an A7 chip. A 2 gigabyte RAM along with the iOS 7 operating system will enhance the performance of the smartphone. The camera is also expected to be a better quality featured on the iPhone 6 for Apple fans.

Why are Solar Energy Projects a SAFE Investment?

       If you are a new investor or you simply are looking around for markets that would be safe to invest in, your choice would most likely be solar energy projects. Why? Well, one reason is because the sun will continue to shine: it currently shines enough rays on the U.S. every day to more than power us for 10 years. 

     Also, solar technology has been a proven and reliable technology. Some solar systems that were installed in the 1970's have lasted far beyond their warranties and are still producing. While it is not a new invented technology, there are improvements recently, which have helped make new systems more reliable. 

      If you are concerned about the quality and efficiency of the solar panel systems, it is most likely that the manufacturers will typically offer 25-year warranties for the equipment, minimum protection guarantees, and insurance to protect against events such as fires or hurricanes. Leading businesses and research groups like DuPont, Standard and Poors, and the Rocky Mountain Institute recently had founded the industry consortium TruSolar. Their goal ultimately is to standardize the risk evaluation process for solar energy projects.

    Investing in solar energy projects are not equivalent to investing in a company's stock. While investing in a business comes risks of the company failing; investing in solar energy projects, on the other hand, would be considered a tangible asset. It's an asset that depends on a proven technology using the rays that we know will keep shining upon it. This means the asset is likely to produce revenue immediately and to keep producing it. 

       Last but not least, solar energy projects, in essence, saves money. With the price of solar energy continuing to fall and costs of fossil fuel is rising, solar energy is poised to become a better investment in the long run. It already has outperformed the S&P 500 in 13 states, and major investors are taking note. 

Apple is Seeking for Engineer Experienced in Thin-Film Solar Technology

         A new listing on Apple's website suggests Apple could be looking to add solar technology into mobile devices. Discovered by 9to5Mac, the listing outlines a candidate that needs to be experienced with thin-film technologies and refinement of how that technology integrates with electronic systems. This could also potentially point to future Apple products having solar charging capabilities.
        In the past, Apple has filed for patents pertaining to the use of solar assemblies directly in a smartphone display, and the company has already made clear its desire to use panels at its Spaceship campus. Hiring someone on with extensive solar and semiconductor experience could help Apple on a path toward having their mobile devices that harness the sun. Simply imagine if there were all Apple products having solar charging capabilities, how wonderful that would be to not worry about your phone dying on the most crucial moments (especially when everyone is on their phones 24/7).

Apple's spaceship campus

India + Renewable Energy = Positive Consequences

     India is growing in its expanding its clean energy opportunities, specifically solar, wind and other renewable energy projects, throughout India. In the last month, the Indian government had announced a $7.9 billion investment is to double its transmission capacity, which was designed to increase access to power from wind and solar projects. For instance, India's installed solar energy capacity has jumped from a mere 17 megawatts in 2010, when India's National Solar Mission was announced, to over 1.7 megawatts. Not only do these renewable energy projects increase India's energy supply, but they also help create much needed jobs.

Grid-connected concentrated solar power project under construction in India

 
     The Indian government and businesses around the country are making significant investments in renewable resources. The investment in transmission capacity and the next phase of the National Solar Mission are example policies to drive clean energy development. The motivations for these investments, in part, are to continue to power India's rapid economic growth and increase energy access by providing modern electricity to the nearly 400 million population in India without access to modern electricity.

Girls Inc. - Solar-Powered Tech

      Roughly speaking, 100 girls in Oakland are creating solar panel-powered technology this summer. Through Girls Inc., girls teams are making solar wrist USB chargers, cell chargers, backpack chargers, and purse chargers that will charge nearly any technology device. 

      To create their visions, participants meet on weekdays from Monday to Thursday on the Girls Inc. campus at Concordia Park. They attend workshops, field trips, and activities throughout the month. Girls Inc. participants begin their program, Eureka!, in the 7th grade. They finish when they're in the senior year in high school. 

       "It is important for girls to innovate because girls are users," said Danielle Stanton, the Girls Inc. Rookies Coordinator. "When we put ourselves into the shoes of designers, engineers and overall innovators, we incorporate our own perspective, which is important considering women have more purchasing power nationwide. We are able to make products that will benefit a large majority of the population."

Solar-Powered Boat has Reached Paris

         The world's largest solar-powered boat, Turanor PlanetSolar, has docked on the banks of Seine River, its final port of its 3-month voyage across the Atlantic Ocean to study how the Gulf Stream and climate change could influence each other. Starting from Miami in June, University of Geneva scientists had sailed up the eastern seaboard of the United States, then across the Atlantic Ocean, taking water and air measurements that should allow them to better understand the complex interaction between the ocean and the atmosphere. 

         The expedition's chief climatologist Martin Beniston commented, "Our first surprise when we started looking at the data is the quantity of the aerosols that are actually injected into the atmosphere by the ocean, which means we might have underestimated the climatic role of the oceans via aerosols."

For more details about Turanor PlanetSolar, click here. 

Finca Bellavista -- Solar Treehouse

     Tucked away in the Costa Rican rainforest is the remote treehouse community, Finca Bellavista, built by two Americans who wanted to create a village like that of the Ewoks of Endor in the movie, "Star Wars," who lived high among the trees. The eco-friendly village features many tree homes, including Mis Ojos. This two-level abode includes a porch, kitchenette, bathroom and outdoor shower and offers amazing cliff and waterfall views. The off-the-grid complex relies on solar and wind power for energy, composting toilets and running water collected in gravity-fed rainwater catch tanks above the abodes.

GoSun Stove: Portable, High-Efficiency Solar Cooker

 

      Solar energy expert and Cincinnati, Ohio native Patrick Sherwin, realized an innovation that he created one day while removing some solar collectors from a client's roof. In the 10 years since Sherwin removed those solar collectors from a client's roof, he's been working on perfecting the art of solar cooking. On September 5th, he had launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to mass-produce his GoSun Stove, a compact $279 solar cooker that he hopes could not just change the way the Western civilization uses and looks at sources of renewable energy, but also impact the entire world.

        The Kickstarter campaign, which had raised more than 1/4 of its $40,000 goal within the first 10 hours of its launch, is being used as a means for Sherwin and his team to raise funds for marketing, equipment and manufacturing and other programs to bring the invention to developing countries in need of less dangerous and time consuming ways to cook food.

Indian Solar Invention Reduces Food Waste

       

       
        A group of Indian graduate students have came up with a solution that helps reduce the problems faced in rural areas in India: food, electricity and income. Vaibhav Tidke, Shital Somani, and Aditya Kulkarni had used different scientific backgrounds to innovate a solar conduction dryer, which helps to dry out fruits and vegetables, enabling farmers to preserve and sell the food at a higher price. This, in result, solves several problems at once as this technology reduces food spoilage, extends food shelf life and allow nutritional retention, helping the agriculture-dependent livelihood earn more.
        Their creation, known as the Solar Conduction Dryer (SCD), recently had won the grand prize at the 2013 Dell Social Innovation Challenge (DSIC), an initiative of the RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service at the LBJ School of Public Affairs in the University of Texas. The trio had received $60,000 in prize money to help fund and commercialize their project.

Elysium: Grow in Self-Awareness

     The newly released "Elysium" has been a spectacular movie for me. It had opened my eyes and made me realize even more why I have decided to embark upon this journey to inform the public of the benefits of solar energy and arose awareness of it.
      This movie has inspired me even more because it shows of the catastrophic future we may have in store for us if we continue to use excessive amounts of fossil fuels and consistently contaminate our clean air with pollution.
       Therefore, as I am spreading the awareness (and many others) of solar energy and other renewable energy sources, I hope that communities may grow in knowledge to the technology that is available to us, which is steadily growing with many scientists and researchers heavily researching about new technologies.

SunnyBot uses the Sun to Light and Heat Homes

       Developed by Italian startup Solenica, SunnyBot is approximately the size of a large desk lamp and equipped with an on-board mirror that continuously adjusts to reflect the sun's rays on a chosen area. The idea is to exploit sunlight and recycle it as a light source for other gloomy rooms or to reflect the sun's heat to warm the room, heat a swimming pool or nurture indoor plants.
       SunnyBot is actually integrated with a dual-axis microcomputer that's powered by a row of solar cells and comes with an optional feedback system. The device redirects 7,000 lumens (equivalent to a single 500-watt halogen lamp) with a range of nearly over 656 feet.

Solar-Powered Boat to Patrol Great Barrier Reef

          The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 1,600 miles. Patrolling this area seems to be a difficult task for Queensland's Department of National Parks, Recreation, Sport and Racing (DNPRSR) and Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) and so, the agencies are using solar power to help.
          Marine engineering consultants (MEC) have been requested from these agencies to help construct a 78.7 feet long-range Catamaran Patrol Vessel to work in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area. The catamaran is very eco-friendly as it is equipped with extensive solar panels, high R-value insulation, zoned air conditioning, as well as window blinds and shutters to reduce the impact of the Queensland sun.

Titan Aerospace's Solar-Powered "Satellite"

           Titan Aerospace is currently developing a high-altitude solar-powered (unmanned) plane, in which it is the world's first atmospheric "satellite" with limited applications. As Spectrum has written: "The Solara is intended to loft a payload to 20,000 meters (60,000 feet) and then keep it there for five years, running entirely on solar power. It functions a bit like a satellite except substantially cheaper and much more versatile. And, you can get it back when you're done."

            The Titan Solara 50 solar plane has a wingspan of approximately 150 feet. It has the ability to carry a payload of around 250 pounds to "atmospheric orbit" and then stay operational up there, thanks to the 3,000 solar panel cells that can produce 7 kilowatts of electricity).