DIY: How to Make Your Own Solar Power Generator!

September 17, 2014, 12:08 pm

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Solar power is a clean, renewable energy source that can help limit climate change by liberating us from fossil fuels – but do you know what actually makes the technology tick? It’s not as complex as it seems – and this awesome new DIY tutorial from Rapid Online walks you through everything you need to know to make your own solar power generator! The full infographic explains which components you need, provides a step-by-step guide to assembling a photovoltaic system, and contains lots of useful facts about solar generators as well as some important safety precautions – check it out after the break!

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BOOK REVIEW: “Harvesting Space for a Greener Earth” Looks at Solving Earth’s Problems with Solutions in Our Own Solar System

September 19, 2014, 11:00 am

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In Harvesting Space for a Greener Earth (Springer), authors Greg Matloff, C Bangs, and Les Johnson provide refreshing potential solutions for the human race to start looking at our problems from the big picture. They propose that we should start harvesting the resources in our solar system; after all, they’re the same resources that allowed Earth to develop life in the first place. We live on a crowded planet with depleting resources, and we’re facing a climate change conundrum that’s producing a host of other problems. What can we possibly do to start to tackle these issues, and how could we even entertain the idea of spending money on off-planet ventures? Check out our review of this topical and ambitious book!

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Post tags: asteroids, astronomy, C Bangs, future Earth, Greg Matloff, Harvesting Space, Harvesting Space for a Greener Earth, Les Johnson, outer space, Solar Power, space, space exploration, space travel

This Polish Town is 100% Powered by Renewable Energy!

September 22, 2014, 2:14 pm

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The town of Kisielice in Poland is 100 percent powered by renewable energy! In recognition of its achievement, the town has just been awarded a European Commission ManagEnergy Award 2014 in the self-sufficiency category. The achievement is even more remarkable given that Poland as a whole derives around 90 percent of its energy from coal.

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Angry Skies and a Dense Forest are No Match for this Sprawling Solar Array

September 25, 2014, 7:10 am

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Facebook Unveils Plans for Solar-Powered Internet Drones as Big as 747s

September 25, 2014, 2:04 pm

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Yael Maguire, the engineering director at Facebook‘s Connectivity Lab, has revealed further details about the social media giant’s plans to expand internet access to communities worldwide. In order to achieve global connectivity, the company has been discussing using drones, or planes as they prefer to call them, that will constantly circle in the skies. In conversation with Mashable CEO Pete Cashmore, Maguire stated the planes would be “roughly the size of a commercial aircraft, like a 747.” As astounding as that revelation is on its own, it also raises regulatory questions. Not only are there unresolved issues around launching and airspace controls, but with an anticipated need for thousands of planes, the company says it is impractical for one person to control only one plane at a time as current legislation requires.

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French Island is Building Perhaps the Most Beautiful Solar Plant

September 26, 2014, 3:00 am

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Who says solar power can’t be gorgeous? The people of New Caledonia are out to prove the naysayers wrong with what may be the most beautiful solar farm on the planet. The idea is to build a heart-shaped solar plant that will supply 2mW of solar power to 750 homes on the Pacific island, not only reducing carbon emissions, but enhancing the natural beauty of the plant’s surroundings.

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IBM’s New Sunflower-Shaped Solar Concentrators Produce Energy AND Fresh Water!

September 26, 2014, 5:00 am

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IBM Research and Swiss solar technology company Airlight Energy just unveiled a cutting-edge solar system that resembles a 10-meter-high sunflower! The High Concentration PhotoVoltaic Thermal (HCPVT) system can concentrate the sun’s radiation 2,000 times and convert 80 percent of it into useful energy, generating up to 12 kilowatts of electrical power and 20 kilowatts of heat on a sunny day—enough to power several average homes. Oh, and it can also produce clean, fresh water as a result of the process used to cool the solar cells!

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Post tags: airlight energy, alternative energy, clean water, desalination, HCPVT, ibm, IBM Research, photovoltaics, renewable energy, solar concentrator, Solar Power, solar sunflower, Switzerland

6 Reasons Everyone Should Have One of These Awesome $15 Solar d.light Lanterns

September 26, 2014, 6:34 am

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World’s First Solar-Powered Snowboard Charges Gadgets on the Slopes!

October 1, 2014, 8:38 am

≫ Next: The UK’s First Floating Solar Farm Unveiled in Berkshire

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Next time you hit the slopes on a sunny day there is no need to worry about your gadgets running out of juice. Snowboard manufacturer Signal – the company that recently created the world’s first 3D printed snowboard – just launched the Solar Hybrid board that charges your electronic devices with clean, renewable energy while you cruise down the mountain. The board contains a thin layer of solar cells embedded into the topsheet that harvests energy from the sun to power your electronics as you ride.

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The UK’s First Floating Solar Farm Unveiled in Berkshire

October 1, 2014, 2:11 pm

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The UK’s first floating solar farm was just installed in Berkshire. The floating array features 800 photovoltaic panels and has a capacity of 200kW. The project cost £250,000 ($405,400) and has been installed on a reservoir at Sheeplands Farm near Wargrave. Farm owner, Mark Bennett, has partnered with floating solar pioneers Ciel et Terre, and hopes to spur interest in applying the technology on reservoirs throughout the UK.

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This Gigantic Solar Hourglass Could Power 1,000 Danish Homes

October 1, 2014, 2:14 pm

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6 Fun, Fantastic Bus Stops from Around the World

October 3, 2014, 6:26 am

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Ohio Scientists Invent World’s First Rechargeable Solar Battery

October 3, 2014, 2:12 pm

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A team of Ohio State University scientists have invented what they claim is the world’s first rechargeable solar battery. The team observed the issues in current methods for collecting and storing solar energy – particularly energy loss, which can run at around 20 percent during the process of transferring collected energy to a battery. They then developed a design that integrates a solar panel and battery components into one efficient and cost-effective device.

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Tour the PARKROYAL Hotel Singapore’s Surreal Sky Gardens and Greenery-Wrapped Towers (PHOTOS)

October 5, 2014, 8:35 am

≫ Next: The Natural Symphony Housing Project Conceptualizes Self-Sustainability in Architecture

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The Natural Symphony Housing Project Conceptualizes Self-Sustainability in Architecture

October 7, 2014, 12:30 pm

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Designed by Cristian Ferrera Architecture, “Natural Symphony” is an exploration of architectural sustainability, with a prototype designed to house four people per unit. Centered around a large prism-shaped space for common use, there are stairs and elevators that spread out towards the individual units, with decks between each of the nine levels. On the outside, cells harness wind energy through tubular conduits, while solar photovoltaic cells cover the roof. These two energy sources can provide up to 50 percent of the housing system’s energy needs, and there are also areas intended for rainwater collection to be used in greywater systems. This project was recently selected to be featured at the International Architecture Biennale in Argentina this November, 2014.

+ Cristian Ferrera

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Post tags: "sustainable architecture", Argentina, Cristian Ferrera, greywater, International Architecture, International Architecture Biennale in Argentina, Natural Symphony, rainwater collection, solar panels, Solar Power, Sustainability, wind cells, wind energy

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London Converts Iconic Red Phone Booths into Free Solar Charging Stations

October 7, 2014, 3:36 pm

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While the UK’s iconic phone booths are still considered national icons, cellphones have largely rendered the big red boxes obsolete over the years. Solarbox London plans to change that by transforming phone booths into free solar-powered phone charging stations. The company’s retrofitted phone booth chargers are painted bright green, and they now bring solar energy to the selfie-addicted masses. Kirsty Kenny and Harold Craston founded SolarBox and earned second place for their innovative idea in this year’s Mayor of London’s Low Carbon Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

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Desertec Solar Power Project Abandoned by Shareholders

October 16, 2014, 7:00 am

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The ambitious, multibillion dollar solar power project Desertec has been abandoned by all but three of its shareholders and will now continue in an “adapted format” as a consultancy. The project was expected to provide up to 20 percent of Europe’s energy needs by 2050 by importing power from solar farms in North Africa and the Middle East. Despite estimates that more energy could be harvested from the desert sun in six hours than humanity could use in a year, the project’s backers have steadily withdrawn, citing high costs, a reluctance to invest in the region, and the fact that Europe seems to be doing a very good job of producing renewable energy at home, thank you very much.

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UK Building World’s Most Environmentally Friendly Solar Farm

October 22, 2014, 11:00 am

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UK-based solar farm operator Primrose Solar is teaming up with solar company Solarcentury to build a 48 MWp solar farm on the Southwick Estate in Fareham, Portsmouth. The farm will produce enough clean electricity to power 11,000 homes, but that’s not the whole of the good news story. The companies are taking a holistic approach to the project with the aim of making it the greenest ground-mounted solar farm in the world. They plan to achieve this by incorporating such environmentally friendly features as a full ecological site survey and using solar and biodiesel generators during construction.

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MGM Installs America’s Largest Rooftop Solar Array but it Only Powers 1/5 of the Hotel

October 24, 2014, 12:38 pm

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When you think Las Vegas you might not think about sustainability, but that’s all starting to change – in a big way. MGM Resorts announced that it has installed the largest rooftop solar array in the US – the second biggest in the entire world – on top of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. Now, before you get too excited, keep in mind that the stunningly massive array will only generate a mere 1/5 of the building’s needs.

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Massive Solar Farm Could Pump Clean Energy From the Sahara to England

October 24, 2014, 2:30 pm

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The blazing Sahara sun may power homes a world away by 2018. The people behind a new $13 million project called TuNur farm propose to build a massive 100-square-kilometer solar farm in Tunisia. The farm would then connect directly to the UK, pumping energy through a 280-mile-long underwater cable.


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Post tags: desert solar, eco design, from the sahara to england, green design, Nur Energie, sahara solar farm, solar farm, sustainable design, Tunisia, TuNur Farm, UK subsidies for solar