Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2017 at Adelaide, Australia (presented at www.sunisthefuture.net)
Crowds awaiting for the arrival of solar cars at Adelaide, Australia (presented at www.sunisthefuture.net)
Finish Line at Adelaide, Australia (presented at www.sunisthefuture.net)
Awaiting for the arrival of solar cars at Adelaide, Australia (presented at www.sunisthefuture.net)
(Please click on red links & note magenta)
On this gorgeous Oct. 12, 2017, sun drenched day, Victoria Square at Adelaide, Australia, was filled with enthusiastic solar or vehicle advocates, parents, solar car racers/students from 30 countries, and curious audience, awaiting for the first solar vehicles to arrive. Without further ado, allow me to share the excitement of participants and audience of Bridgestone World Solar Challenge 2017 at Adelaide, Australia, below:
More photos, videos, and posts about these and other solar vehicles designed, built, and raced by students from 30 countries will be presented in the following posts.
For more on history of World Solar Challenge, please feel free to refer to our previous posts, below:
Glorious Day For Solar Cars Parade at Victoria Square of Adelaide, Australia (credit: sunisthefuture-Susan SUn Nunamaker). It is Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015 (Adelaide time) but Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015 in some parts of the world.
The Solar Car Parade of World Solar Challenge will start at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2015 (Adelaide time…although it is still Oct. 24, 2015 in some parts of the world), at Victoria Square of Adelaide, Australia. It’s a glorious day for Solar Car Parade and a glorious time for Solar Energy Future!
Solar Car Parade of World Solar Challenge 2015 at Victoria Square in Adelaide, Australia (credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
Below is the video of the Solar Cars that came in on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2015. A great big applause for all of these teams, students, and supporters for their time, energy, and effort. It’s been a great learning opportunity for all of us! More will be posted and video uploaded later.
Below is the video of all of the solar cars that participated in World Solar Challenge 2015 Solar Car Parade on Oct. 25, 2015, at the Victoria Square of Adelaide, Australia:
You may also be interested in these posts from the past, below:
The Swiss Solar Impulse 2 (solar airplane) and French solar rooftops have inspired me to look toward other forms of transport and surface areas to be powered by or used to generate solar energy. It’s fantastic that there had been quite a few interesting progress made in the area of trains. Case in point, the high speed train powered by solar energy, in the video below, was in service back in 2011 in Belgium:
The rail line between Antwerp and Amsterdam(about 80 miles) in Belgium was the first solar paneled train tunnel (about 2.2 mile long tunnel) in Europe that utilized 16,000 solar panels (costed $22 million for installation) to power the railway infrastructure and trains back in June (started on June 14), of 2011, bringing clean energy to trains. This Solar Tunnel project is expected to generate 3.3 megawatts of energy (equivalent of the average annual electricity consumption for 4,000 trains or about 1,000 homes). The project partner Enfinity also indicated that the tunnel is decreasing CO2 emissions by 2,400 tons annually. “It is the perfect way to cut the carbon footprint because the spaces used have no other economic value,” commented by Bart Van Renterghem, Enfinity former UK head. Other collaborators on this project were Belgium rail operator Infrabel and solar construction company Solar Power Systems. This was a fantastic clean energy project because it is optimizing the previously idled space and once the installation is in place, there is to be no consumption of fuel or coal and at no cost to our environment.
About 4461 miles (or 7179 km) away, India is planning to massively utilize the solar energy via its state-owned railway systems. With one of the largest railway networks in the world, running about 12,000 trains, 23 million passengers (practically the entire Australian population), and 3 million tonnes of freight daily, much energy is needed. In 2012, the Indian Railways consumed nearly 3 million kiloliters of diesel oil and about14 billion kWh of electricity . So, India’s railway minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu wants to control such a ballooning fuel bill by shifting toward alternative energy sources. Since the Indian Railway System is aiming to have at least 10% of its total energy consumption coming from renewable energy by 2020, the railway minister wants to incorporate more alternative energy sources to power trains. This is first done by solar powered lighting via solar panels mounted on the roofs of the trains. This is now being tested on a non-AC coach on the Rewari–Sitapurpassenger train.
Indian Solar Train photographed by Anil Kumar Chhatri or credit citymetric.com
The cost of installing panels on each coach is about Rs3.9 lakh (about $6,084), translating into savings of Rs1.24 lakh (about $1,934) per year, According to The Economic Times of India Times. In the next few weeks, the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, and the railway coach maker Integral Coach Factory will be testing the solar paneled coach under a variety of conditions. Besides the solar powered coach, the Indian Railways will also be building solar power plants of about 8.8 MW (megawatts) in 200 train stations and some of its office buildings.
Without the common vision and collaborations from policy makers, such ambitious projects would not have existed. In India, it took the echoing support between India’s prime minister Narendra Modiand railway minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu to enable such a solar project to become a reality. Prime Minister Modi encouraged alternative energy projects by encouraging solar companies from around the world to invest $100 billion to reach its solar power capacity target of 100,000 MWby 2022 (about five times India’s current solar power generation capacity). He was also instrumental behind another ambitious project, World’s First Canal Solar Power Plant in India, in Gujarat, in one of our previous post.
I hope all policy makers and governing bodies will receive the support he/she/they/it need(s) during this critical transitional period in human history, onward and forward toward the renewable/solar energy future! For deep down, within all of our hearts, we know that Solar/Renewable/Clean Energy is the solution/answer to Energy-Pollution-Economic Prosperity-International Conflicts. The sooner we get there, the better it will be for us and our posterity. In our system of democracy, perhaps all of us may be able to help play a part in assisting our policy makers in arriving at the correct decisions or policies quickly.
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
NUNA 7 of Nuon Solar Team of Delft University of Technology(Netherlands), Leading By The End of First Day (Oct. 6, 2013) of the World Solar Challenge 2013 (solar car race) in Challenger Class (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
Below is the video of beginning of the World Solar Challenge 2013 (Oct. 6, 2013), in front of the Parliament House at Darwin, Australia.
ARROW1 of Team Arrow of Queensland University of Technology (Australia) seen on Oct. 5, 2013, after dynamic scrutineering process at Hidden Valley Motor Sports Complex at Darwin, Australia (Credit sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
ARROW1 of Team Arrow of Queensland University of Technology (Australia) at starting line on Oct. 6, 2013, in front of the Parliament House of Darwin, Australia, also in fifth place of the Challenger Class by the end of the First Day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: World Solar Challenge 2013)
PROVISIONAL RESULTS DAY 1 of World Solar Challenge 2013
Team Nuon from the Netherlands, in their solar car Nuna 7, took an early lead in the Challenger Class of the 2013 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge and at the end of day one are approximately 633 kilometres south of Darwin. Just 32 kilometres behind at the Dunmarra Control Stop there is one minute separating second placed Team Twente in ‘Red Engine’ also from the Netherlands
THE RED ENGINE of University of Twente and Saxion, University of Applied Sciences-Solar Team Twente in Second Place by the End of The First Day, Oct. 6, 2013, during World Solar Challenge 2013, Challenger Class (Crdit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
and the 2011 Champion team Tokai from Japan, who as predicted, made up time early from 20th position on the starting grid.
TOKAI CHALLENGER of Tokai University (Japan)'s Tokai University Team in third place at the End of the First Day of World Solar Challenge 2013, Challenger Class (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
University of Michigan Solar Car Team’s-Generation, is in fourth place by the end of the first day.
GENERATION of University of Michigan Solar Car Team in Fourth of Challenger Class by the end of The First Day (Oct. 6, 2013) of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
approximately 10 kilometres out of Dunmarra with Australia’s Team Arrow showing they can mix it with the elite international field just behind in fifth place. In the Cruiser Class team Bochum from Germany
POWERCORE SUNCRUISER of Germany's University of Applied Sciences Bochum's Hochschule Bochum SolarCar Team in the first place of the Cruiser Class at World Solar Challenge 2013 by the end of the first day (Oct. 6, 2013) (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
is in first place approximately sixty kilometres north of Dunmarra, with team Eindhoven from the Netherlands
STELLA of Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands)'s Solar Team Eindhoven in second place for Cruiser Class by the end of the first day (Oct. 6, 2013) of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
just five kilometres behind in second place, the DAEDALUS of Minnesota Solar team from the University of Minnesota (USA) in third
DAEDALUS of University of Minnesota (USA) in third place of Cruiser Class by the end of the first day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: World Solar Challenge 2013).
place and University of NSW Sunswift team in fourth place
SUNSWIFT of University NSW (Australia) in Fourth of Cruiser Class by the end of the first day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)
approximately 100 kilometres north of Dunmarra. Leading the Adventure Class was Australia’s team Aurora who have never missed a solar challenge; followed by IVE from Hong Kong and Antakari from Chile.
For more photos and videos of World Solar Challenge 2013, please refer to links below:
Sunisthefuture Online Store at Zazzle
Keep in mind that the goal here at Sun Is The Future is to speed up the transition toward renewable/solar energy, for a cleaner, healthier, economically more prosperous, and safer planet earth.
~have a bright and sunny day~
gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any of your comments will be welcomed below or via sunisthefuture@gmail.com (please note if you do not want your email to be shared)
took off on the first leg (between San Francisco and Phoenix) of an aerial odyssey across America without a drop of fuel! Solar Impulse, piloted by Bertrand Piccard this morning, took off from Moffett Field into the Bay Area’s skies at 9:12 A.M. ET and headed south toward Arizona. “A flying laboratory for clean technologies, this prototype is the result of seven years of intense work in the fields of materials science, energy management and man-machine interface,” Andre Borschberg, Solar Impulse’s co-founder and CEO, said before the flight. Borschberg and Piccard will be taking turns in the pilot’s seat for a month-long series of flights that will end up in New York around July 4th. Each leg of this odyssey will be streamed from this site and the project plans to collect thousands of names that will be added to a “Clean Generation” list of supporters carried in the cockpit.
All of Solar Impulse’s power comes from its 12,000 photovoltaic cells on the upper wing surface and store the electrical energy in its lithium polymer batteries under the wing when the sun isn’t shining. This carbon fiber aircraft has a long/wide wingspan and light design because the plane generates as much power as a motor scooter for its four 10-horsepower motors.
Just a quick refresher on Solar Impulse: Its pilot and co-founder Piccard is a record-setting, round-the-world balloonist who draws financial backing from Swiss business. In 2010 Solar Impulse took on the world’s first solar-powered 26-hour night flight in Switzerland. In 2011, it completed the first international solar flight from Switzerland, Belgium to France. In 2012, it completed the first solar-powered intercontinental flight from Europe to North Africa.
In the next few months Solar Impulse will be flying from Phoenix to Dallas-Fort Worth, then to St. Louis, Washington, and New York. For Borschberg and Piccard, this is simply a warm-up before their future ultimate goal and venture in circumnavigating the world with solar power. Allow me to share with you a short video clip: view of Solar Impulse’s HB-SIA and Piccard’s comments:
Allow me to leave you with what Solar Impulse represents, “We are a people-powered movement challenging conventional thinking to inspire innovation, hope and action among citizens and policymakers. Together, let’s promote this pioneering spirit!”
~have a bright and sunny day~
Gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any comments and/or suggestions will be welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
This post may had been prepared/written earlier than the day it appears, but right after the finish of the Veolia World Solar Challenge (world solar car race of twenty countries, 3021 km (1877 mi) between Darwin, Australia, to Angle Vale (official finish line) and Adelaide (ceremonial finish line), Australia, and thirty-seven solar cars) I had to fly to a location/ country where my internet access was not very convenient (it kept on being disconnected whenever I tried to write). However, I was able to load up various video clips onto youtube and I hope many of you have been enjoying these videos about the Veolia World Solar Challenge of 2011. I understand one of you from Netherland is trying to gather as much information about the race as possible. Since this is my first time covering Veolia World Solar Challenge, or WSC (and only had time and budget for the start and end of the race), I hope these photos I took and video clips I uploaded (and filmed by Mike) to youtube will help to meet part of your need. I promise you in two years (next Veolia World Solar Challenge) more detailed coverage about the scrutineering process (before the race) and events along the race will be included. Please keep in mind that the goal and focus of this World Solar Challenge is to increase greater awareness and education for our future generations in application of solar energy in cars and to stimulate greater interest in math, science, and engineering. The emphasis is both in how far and how fast (rather than just how fast) these solar cars can go using energy from the sun. As a matter of fact, part of the rule this year had actually restricted total surface area of the solar cells to 6 sq m and of which only 3 sq m can be of GaAs (gallium arsenide) so to even the playing field. Facility is available if a solar car needs to be “trailered” when insufficient sunshine is available for the duration of the race. This year, due to the extra challenges of cloudiness, rain, and bush fire, only about 7 out of 37 solar cars were able to finish the course completely using solar energy. The atmosphere at WSC is friendly and encouraging rather than fiercely competitive. One finds this to be true either in the scrutineering process (insuring safety of drivers/pilots and those around), tracking of the timing (please refer to: http://www.worldsolarchallenge.org/files/318_2011_veolia_world_solar_challenge_provisional_results_pending_protests.pdf), or in the finish presentation (ritual dip in the Victoria Fountain by all teams (those that were not too shy or too cold) at the end of the race or not so ritual “burning rubber” of the German team). Finally, I’d like to take my hat off to Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 team for being able to pull off a race of this magnitude (involving solar cars from twenty countries) with mostly volunteers working together to make this race work. Running an organization composed of mostly volunteers is not the same as running a normal company (I’ve had experience in both and believe me, running an organization composed mostly of volunteers is not easy!). So, if any of you out there with good ideas (to help improve the solar car race), funding, or time to volunteer, perhaps you’d like to contact Mr. Chris Selwood (leader and rightful owner of Veolia World Solar Challenge) and/or the organization at http://www.worldsolarchallenge.org/contact_us For the ease and convenience of our readers’ pleasures, there are written descriptions for these solar cars with each of the youtube video clip of the interviews for its team members. So please be sure to read (click on “Show more” at each youtube clip) about the descriptions for these solar cars. I tried to take photograph and to interview as many of the participating solar cars of Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 as possible, but due to time constraint, please forgive me if I missed any one. With regard to all the video interviews at youtube, if any of the interviewees’ names is either misspelled or not mentioned, please feel free to contact me at sunisthefuture@gmail.com so I can make the necessary modification. Below, you will find links to our youtube clips/interviews with various teams and photographs of these solar cars. Keep in mind that these videos and photos pertaining to Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 are under Creative Commons as long as you would attribute it/them to Sun Is The Future at http://sunisthefuture.net There will be more posts on human interest stories and lessons learned regarding Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 later.
Nuon Solar Team’s Nuna 6 (Netherlands), 2nd Winning Team that arrived at Adelaide, Australia
9. Arrival of Nuna 6 of Nuon Solar Team (Netherlands), Second Winning Team of Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011, at Victoria Square of Adelaide, Australia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdNZei5kJmw
University of Michigan’s Quantum (USA), 3rd Winning Team that arrived at Adelaide, Australia
11. Arrival of Quantum of University of Michigan (USA), Top Third Winning Team of Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011, at Victoria Square of Adelaide, Australia: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5E6yO30-5Q8
12. Interview with Ashiya University (Japan) Solar Car Project’s Ashiya Sky Ace V team (4th car that arrived) member at Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtkKA2MKyYs
Ashiya University Solar Car Project’s Ashiya Sky Ace V (Japan), 4th Winning Team arriving at Adelaide, Australia
MIT Solar Electric Vehicle Team’s Chopper Del Sol (USA)
25. Interview with MIT’s Chopper Del Sol (USA) team member minutes before the beginning of the race at Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8r2rVpfnEM
Statistics from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011:
· Even though a majority of the competition days were cloudy, seven out of the 19 houses produced more energy than they consumed
· 357,000 house visits were provided to the public during 10 days
· 92,000 votes were cast for the People’s Choice Award, more than five times the number of votes cast during the previous competition
· A new Affordability Contest was featured, demonstrating the reasonable cost of many energy-saving home improvement products and design solutions available today
· Approximately 4,000 collegiate students earned valuable experience by building an energy efficient house with peers in other disciplines, helping them prepare to enter the clean energy workforce
· Collegiate teams from five countries and four continents participated
Solar Decathlon 2011 teams that competed on the National Mall’s West Potomac Park:
Solar Decathlon 2011 Final Scores and Standings
1.
Maryland
951.151
2.
Purdue
931.390
3.
New Zealand
919.058
4.
Middlebury College
914.809
5.
Ohio State
903.938
6.
SCI-Arc/Caltech
899.490
7.
Illinois
875.715
8.
Tennessee
859.132
9.
Team Massachusetts
856.351
10.
Canada
836.423
11.
Florida Int’l
833.159
12.
Appalachian State
832.499
13.
Parsons NS Stevens
828.816
14.
Tidewater Virginia
774.910
15.
Team China
765.471
16.
Team Belgium
709.843
17.
Team New York
677.356
18.
Team New Jersey
669.352
19.
Team Florida
619.006
Solar Decathlon 2011 Individual Contest Winners
Affordability (Awarded Tuesday, September 27, 2011) Contest
Empowerhouse of Parsons New School of Design and Stevens Institute of Technology tied first place with E-Cube of Belgium’s Ghent University.
Empowerhouse of Parson New School of Design and Stevens Institute of Technology shines brightly at night after a stormy day
Stephen Scribner (front) accepts first place in the Affordability Contest on behalf of Parsons The New School for Design and Stevens Institute of Technology
and Team Belgium Ghent University’s E-Cube
visitors waiting in line to tour inside the finished E-Cube of Team Belgium Ghent University. This is the only entry of Solar Decathlon with second floor, essentially a building kit for a relatively inexperienced builder.
Belgium Toon Vermeir checks the tight competition stands online in the child’s bedroom on the second floor of E-Cube (but due to lack of handicap/wheelchair accessibility, the second floor was closed off to visitors)
tied for first and earned the full 100 points in the contest by constructing houses estimated to cost $229,890 and $249,568, respectively. New for the Solar Decathlon 2011, the Affordability contest encouraged teams to design and build affordable houses that combine energy efficient construction and appliances with renewable energy systems. A professional estimator determined the construction cost of each house. Teams earned 100 points for achieving a target construction cost of $250,000 or less. A sliding point scale was applied to houses with estimated construction costs between $250,001 and $600,000.
Appliances(Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Students from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign speaks with the Engineering Jury during judging
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Re_home shine brightly at night, with Washington Monument in the background
took first place and earned 99.955 out of 100 possible points by outperforming the other 18 houses in keeping its refrigerator and freezer cold, washing and drying loads of laundry during the contest week, and running a dishwasher during the competition. The Appliances Contest is designed to mimic the appliance use of an average U.S. house.
Architecture(Awarded Wednesday, September 28, 2011) Contest Maryland took first place in the Architecture Contest
University of Maryland became the first team to have an electricity meter installed
University of Maryland’s team members celebrate after being presented with First Place in Architecture Contest
and earned 96 points out of a possible 100. A jury of architects judged homes on the aesthetic and functional elements of the home’s design; integration and energy efficiency of electrical and natural light; inspiration and delight to Solar Decathlon visitors; and documentation including drawings, a project manual, and an audiovisual architecture presentation that accurately reflect the constructed project on the competition site.
Comfort Zone(Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest Ohio State University topped the contestants in the Comfort Zone Contest,
Ohio State University’s enCORE shines brightly at night
The Ohio State University team shows visitors the air supply system of their house, enCORE
with 98.652 out of 100 points for maintaining indoor temperatures between 71 and 76 degrees Fahrenheit and relative humidity below 60 percent.
Communications(Awarded Friday, September 30, 2011) Contest Middlebury College’s communications efforts,
Middlebury College’s Self-Reliance shines brightly at night after a stormy day
Middlebury College students pose for photo after accepting the first place award for Communication Contest
including communications plans, student-led tours, and team website, were judged by a jury of website and public relations experts, and won the contest with a score of 90 points out of a possible 100 points.
Engineering(Awarded Thursday, September 29, 2011) Contest New Zealand won the Engineering contest,
New Zealand’s First Light shines brightly at night
New Zealand’s Victoria University of Wellington celebrate after taking first place in Engineering Contest
which was evaluated by a group of prominent engineers, who determined which solar home best exemplified excellence in functionality, efficiency, innovation, reliability and documentation of its energy systems. New Zealand scored 93 out of a possible 100 points.
Home Entertainment(Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest Middlebury College earned 98.560 out of a possible 100 points in this contest, which required students to use electricity generated by their solar houses to run interior and exterior lights, a TV, a computer, and a kitchen appliance to boil water. Teams were also required to hold two dinner parties and a movie night for neighbors.
Middlebury College’s student Melissa Segil prepares a dish during a competition dinner party
Hot Water (Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest Seven teams tied for first and earned the full 100 points in the Hot Water contest’s “shower tests,” which aimed to deliver 15 gallons of hot water in ten minutes or less. Of course, the water was heated by the sun. Tying for top honors in this contest were: Appalachian State University, University of Maryland, New Zealand’s Ghent University, Ohio State University, Parsons NS Stevens, SCI-Arc/Caltech, and Tennessee.
Chelsea Royall, front, Team Design Director of Appalachian State University, talks about her team’s house (The Solar Homestead) on Media Preview Day
New Zealand’s First Light’s dining room
Maryland’s Watershed clear view
University of TN’s Living Light shines brightly at night
Future homeowners of Empowerhouse of Parson New School of Design & Stevens Institute of Technology
rainbow seen between SCI-Arc/Caltech’CHIP (left) & Ohio State University’s enCORE(right)
Energy Balance (Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest
Seven teams tied for first and earned the full 100 points in the Energy Balance contest. Teams earned points for producing at least as much energy as their houses needed during the contest week. The teams accomplished this by balancing production and consumption. Tying for top honors in this contest were: Florida International,
Illinois, Maryland, New Zealand, Purdue, SCI-Arc/Caltech, and Tennessee.
Market Appeal(Awarded Saturday, October 1, 2011) Contest
Middlebury College won the Market Appeal contest, which evaluated whether the cost-effective construction and solar technology in a team’s design would create a viable product on the open market. Judges gauged market appeal based on three criteria: livability, marketability and constructability. Middlebury earned 95 points out of a possible 100 as judged by the professional jury.
More about the Solar Decathlon
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2011 is an award-winning program that challenges collegiate students from around the world to design, build and operate solar-powered houses that are affordable, highly energy efficient, attractive, and easy to live in. The competition shows consumers how to save money and energy with affordable clean energy products that are available today. The nearly two-year projects culminated in an unprecedented display of affordable green living and design on the National Mall’s West Potomac Park from September 23 – October 2, 2011. The Solar Decathlon also provides participating students with hands-on experience and unique training that prepares them to enter our nation’s clean energy workforce, supporting the Obama Administration’s goal of transitioning to a clean energy economy while saving families and businesses money.
posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker, sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Homepage: http://sunisthefuture.net
Any comments and suggestions are welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:
If you are in favor of renewable, clean, or solar energy, please sign this petition for FIT/CLEAN Program, accessible at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065Thank you very much. We are at a critical juncture in human history when individual effort and participation in the transition into renewable energy age is desperately needed! Your signature will be very meaningful in helping all earthlings! For a summary of why we need to switch to power the earth with Wind-Water-Sunlight quickly, reasons are explained by Stanford Professor Mark Z. Jacobson at http://sunisthefuture.net/?m=20110731 There are more than sixteen episodes of discussions on FIT (Feed-In-Tariff/CLEAN Program) available at http://sunisthefuture.net Please feel free to read/listen to them (type in feed-in-tariff in the search box at right). Keep in mind that signing this petition only means that you are in favor of renewable energy and FIT/CLEAN Program and does not obligate you to provide any financial support. We simply want our combined voice to be heard even if we are not spending millions of lobbying dollars. We want to demonstrate that our system of democracy will work for people in all socio-economic strata. So please join us in this earthly movement by signing this petition and participating in our common goal of moving toward the renewable and solar energy age.
Now, back to Solar Decathlon of 2011: Wow! Can’t believe it! This is the last of the twenty collegiate designs being shown at Solar Decathlon of 2011. You know what they say about last but not the least…and so is Team Belgium by Ghent University’s E-Cube design. As its name suggests, the appearance of E-Cube design looks like something out of a science fiction movie, with its two-story, cube-like shape, clean and compactly boxy exterior, complimented by a spacious interior for a family of four with two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, and living areas. E-Cube is an affordable, do-it-yourself building kit for a solar-powered house that is pre-engineered, factory-built, and easily assembled without special skills. The design begins with a starter unit that may be upgraded with enhancements to the PV system and interior finishes as well as extensions to the living space, allowing homeowners to personalize the house according to time and budget available. This house is also structurally flexible with wall panels that are adaptable and an expandable pallet racking system. So, the E-Cube can be reconfigured and expanded. The passive design and solar panels on the roof will eliminate heating and cooling costs upon completion of the house. Please take a look at this affordable zero-energy home designed and built by students of Ghent University—>
written and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker, sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Greetings, Fellow Sunshine Lovers & Supporters for Solar Energy,
Firstly, Happy Mother’s Day!
If you are in favor of renewable/CLEAN energy, please sign the petition page showing support for FIT/CLEAN Program at http://sunisthefuture.net/?page_id=1065 Thank you.
Sorry about the delay of this week’s postings…I tend to procrastinate when the issue seems to carry more weight in my heart…for I sincerely believe the thorough implementation of optimal Feed-In-Tariff (FIT) for solar and all other renewable energies have the potential of accelerating our transition into renewable energy era at such an incredibly tremendous pace that it will help to bring down the cost of solar technology like you won’t believe! It had both perplexed and troubled me how snail- paced Feed-In-Tariff (FIT) had been spreading/implementing within US, considering the fact that the first form of feed-in-tariff was actually implemented in US in 1978, under President Jimmy Carter’s administration, telling Americans that the energy crisis was a “clear and present danger to our nation” and drew out a plan to address it. Thirty-three years later, here we are now, in 2011, when feed-in-tariff had been enacted in more than sixty four other countries including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Iran, Republic of Ireland, Israel, Italy, the Republic of Korea, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mongolia, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, UK, while only about a dozen states in the United States, have implemented this fantastic policy mechanism designed to encourage the adoption of renewable energy sources and to help accelerate the move toward grid parity (grid parity is the point at which alternative means of generating electricity is at least as cheap as grid power.)
Put it simply, Feed-In-Tariff is an incentive policy that requires the power company to buy renewable energy from any one who produces it. No matter how small the producer is, the power company has to buy the renewable energy from the producer. Different tariff rates are set for different renewable energy technologies, linked to the cost of resource development in each case. Typically, FITs include three key provisions:
guaranteed grid access
long-term contracts (often 15-25 years) for the electricity produced
purchase prices that are based on the cost of renewable energy generation and tend towards grid parity
The cost based prices therefore enable a diversity of projects (wind, solar, etc.) to be developed while investors can obtain a reasonable return on renewable energy investments. This principle was first explained in Germany’s 2000 RES Act:
“The compensation rates…have been determined by means of scientific studies, subject to the provision that the rates identified should make it possible for an installation – when managed efficiently – to be operated cost-effectively, based on the use of state-of-art technology and depending on the renewable energy sources naturally available in a given geographical environment.” (RES Act 2000, Explanatory Memorandum A)
In 2008, the European Commission concluded that well-adapted feed-in-tariff regimes are generally the most efficient and effective support schemes for promoting renewable electricity. This conclusion is also supported by International Energy Agency, the European Federation for Renewable Energy, and Deutsche Bank.
Now I would like to share with you a video clip on discussion (of New America Foundation) of a panel of Americans who have seen and learned from the experience of other countries with Feed-In-Tariff (at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsIMR3foWuQ)
.
Countries with the best policies (such as Feed-In-Tariff) tend to be able to attract more investments and ultimately leading to better local economy and job opportunities. It does appear to me, that if US would be able to implement Feed-In-Tariff effectively, there would be a better chance for US to regain its leadership position in renewable energy world.
