Recently the US Government, under the administration of President Barack Obama, installed solar energy panels on the White House. But this is not the first time the White House has been solar-powered. President Carter had solar panels installed during his term, only to have President
Most people have heard that solar energy, as a green, renewable, nonpolluting energy source, can help reduce our ‘climate footprint.’ But it is not as widely known that solar energy is also a huge water saver! Solar energy production does not rely on water, unlike nonrenew
Under a law set to expire 2016, customers who install a new home solar system receive a 30% Federal Tax Credit. There is no upper limit on the credit (the more you invest in your system, the bigger the credit). Tax credits are also available for businesses. If the credit is not extend
As Go Solar California explains: “The California Solar Rights Act was created in 1978 (AB 3250, 1978), and it created a legal framework for solar access. The law includes protections to allow consumers access to sunlight (and prevent shading of systems) and to limit the ability
Solar energy is not produced by the sun’s heat, but by the physics of how the semiconductor cells work. They actually work better the colder they are. So those hot inland solar energy systems are actually losing some output on hot summer days, compared to their cool coastal cousins. W
One fact that often surprises people is that the most commonly installed residential solar energy systems do not have batteries. These “on-grid” or “grid-tied” systems are connected to the home’s electrical service, and feed any excess power being produced, beyond wh
Scientific American reports: “The solar-powered airplane [which flew] over the Pacific Ocean, from Japan to Hawaii, has set a slew of new world records, logging the farthest and longest flights made so far in a solar-powered aircraft. The Solar Impulse 2 plane set the new