The report also calls for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to build and launch a replacement for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory, which failed at launch in February 2009. It would monitor carbon dioxide emissions from cities and power plants and attribute them to individual countries. No other satellite has the same critical combination of abilities, including high precision, a small footprint, and an ability to sense carbon dioxide concentrations near Earth's surface. See the press release from the National Academies and the full report.
DOE Picks 20 Teams to Compete in the 2011 Solar Decathlon
DOE selected 20 collegiate teams to compete in the next Solar Decathlon in fall 2011 at the National Mall in Washington D.C. For two weeks, teams of college and university students from across the US and around the world will compete to build and operate the most affordable, attractive, effective, and energy-efficient solar-powered houses.
The competition will highlight affordable homes that combine energy-efficient construction and appliances with renewable energy systems that are available today. Teams generally design and partially build their solar homes on or near their campus, then ship the homes by truck (and sometimes by barge) to the National Mall, where they have a limited number of days to finish construction. The teams then open their homes to the public while they compete in 10 contests.
The selected teams and their projects represent a diverse range of design approaches, building technologies, and geographic locations, including urban, suburban, and rural settings.
Applications for the 2011 competition were evaluated by a panel of engineers, scientists, and experts from the National Renewable Energy Lab. Teams had to meet specific criteria including their ability to design and build an innovative, entirely solar-powered house; to raise additional funds; to support the project through a well-integrated curriculum; and to assemble the team necessary to carry the project through to completion.
See the DOE press release and the newly revised Solar Decathlon Web site.
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EREE Network News is a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
