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Solar Plane Sets Distance Record in 18-Hour Flight

But Phoenix-Dallas flight wasn't exactly shredding any speed records

(Newser) - The Solar Impulse—the entirely solar-powered plane you have to be a little bit crazy to fly —isn't even close to finished with its ambitious cross-country odyssey , but it's already made history. The Impulse broke its own record for the longest solar-powered flight today when it landed... More »

First Cross-Country Solar-Fueled Flight Takes Off

Pilots to undergo amazing physical feat of endurance

(Newser) - A solar-powered plane took off this morning for what will be the first exclusively sun-fueled cross-country flight . The Solar Impulse left a California airfield at 6am, and should ultimately land in Washington by mid-June, with five stops along the way, the Washington Post reports. It's the first solar-powered plane... More »

Solar-Powered Plane Ready for Toughest Flight Yet

Solar Impulse will take off May 1, cross country

(Newser) - Solar Impulse is ready for its toughest challenge yet: Starting May 1, the sun-powered plane will begin a long, slow trip from California to the other side of the United States, reports the Mercury News . With four 10-horsepower engines, the Solar Impulse flies at 35 miles per hour—that's... More »

Abound Solar Files for Bankruptcy

US Department of Energy had funded this one, too

(Newser) - Another government-supported solar panel company bit the dust today, Reuters reports. Abound Solar filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in Delaware after receiving about $70 million of a $400 million loan from the US Department of Energy, the firm said. The 125-employee company said it also had $300 million in private... More »

Giant Solar Plant in Mojave Could Flip Airplanes

Mammoth Ivanpah plant gives rise to many safety concerns

(Newser) - The largest solar energy plant in the world could bring a surprising array of dangers to the Mojave Desert when constructed is completed, reports the LA Times . First off, it's huge: 170,000 large mirrors will be installed at the Ivanpah plant, heating water in three 45-story towers to... More »

Plane Makes 1st Solar-Powered Intercontinental Flight

Solar Impulse travels from Spain to Morocco

(Newser) - A plane powered entirely by the sun is nearing the end of the world's first solar-powered intercontinental flight. The Solar Impulse left Madrid early this morning, crossed the Strait of Gibraltar, and entered Moroccan airspace, AFP reports. The carbon-fiber plane, which is the size of a jumbo jet but... More »

Romney Also Threw Cash at Solar Failures

In seeking to bring Mass. jobs, Romney was same as Obama in 'picking winners and losers'

(Newser) - Brace yourself for another round of political I-know-you-are-but-what-am-I: Mitt Romney has repeatedly hammered President Obama for the White House's role in Solyndra's meltdown, but now Konarka Technologies, another solar energy company in which Romney invested public funds as Massachusetts governor, has gone bankrupt, reports the Boston Herald . Romney... More »

Solar-Powered Vessel Travels 'Round the World

MS Turanor PlanetSolar lands safely in Monaco

(Newser) - A cool, spaceship-like catamaran dropped anchor in Monaco yesterday after completing the first-ever round-the-world trip by a solar-powered vessel, the LA Times reports. The MS Turanor PlanetSolar left Monaco in September of 2010 with the goal of showing "that we have the technologies as well as the knowledge to... More »

Solyndra Almost Scored Navy Deal

Pentagon pulled out ahead of bankruptcy filing

(Newser) - Solar-energy firm Solyndra was one of three companies picked for a $1 million Navy pilot program for new technologies—but the Navy cut ties to the firm the day before Solyndra declared bankruptcy. A top investor in Solyndra, RockPort Capital, also sits on the Pentagon's emerging technology panel. When... More »

Solyndra CEO Resigns

Brian Harrison considered leaving before bankruptcy filing: company

(AP) - The CEO of the solar energy company that sought bankruptcy protection after receiving a $528 million loan guarantee from the Obama administration has resigned. Solyndra said in papers filed in Delaware bankruptcy court today that Brian Harrison resigned last Friday. Harrison's resignation was contemplated even before the company sought... More »

Solar Firm Touted by Obama Goes Belly-Up

...leaving Uncle Sam on the hook for $535M

(Newser) - One of the showpieces for President Obama’s green jobs push is going under—and leaving the federal government on the hook for $535 million worth of guaranteed loans in the process. Solyndra, a California-based solar cell manufacturer, told workers yesterday that it would be closing its remaining plant, laying... More »

Arizona Desert to Get World's Second-Tallest Structure

Giant solar tower will start going up next year

(Newser) - It's going to be a strange sight to be sure: America's tallest tower will be smack dab in the middle of the deserts of the Southwest, and for good reason. This skyscraper will not be an office building, but a massive solar energy complex, reports KNXV-TV . The tower,... More »

Feds Coughing Up $4.5B for Calif. Solar Projects

Three projects to generate 1,330 megawatts of power

(Newser) - Hollywood may be home to the stars, but California is going solar—with $4.5 billion in loan guarantees from the Department of Energy going to three solar energy projects, reports the AP . The three projects, to be announced today, will create 1,330 metawatts of power and generate 1,... More »

Google Wants Solar Panels on Your Roof

Company invests $280M in plan with installer SolarCity

(AP) - Google is investing $280 million to help private US homeowners put solar panels on their rooftops. The money will allow installer SolarCity to offer solar systems to 10,000 homeowners for no money up front. In exchange, customers agree to pay a set price for the power produced by the... More »

Solar Panels Power Marines in Afghanistan

Alternative energy test wins over skeptics

(Newser) - US Marines in Afghanistan say flexible solar panels aren't just helping them cut back on fuel consumption, they're making military personnel safer. A unit testing the Solar Portable Alternative Communications Energy System—SPACES—says it reduced generators' diesel consumption from 20 gallons a day to 2.5 gallons a day,... More »

Sahara Holds Key to Powering Half the World

'Solar Breeder Project' would extract silica from desert sand

(Newser) - Scientists in Japan and Algeria have a plan they say could provide half the world’s electricity needs by 2050, and it all starts with the Sahara desert. Factories built around the desert could isolate the silica from sand to make photovoltaic solar panels; the panels could power solar plants;... More »

Biggest-Ever Solar Plant Wins OK in Calif.

Desert installation will double America's solar power capacity

(Newser) - Federal regulators have green-lighted the world's largest solar power installation. The Blythe Solar Power Plant, to be built on 7,000 acres of public land in California, will double the amount of solar energy the US can produce, the Los Angeles Times reports. The German company behind the project aims... More »

White House Adding Solar Panels (Again)

Sun to provide electricity, heat water for White House

(Newser) - The White House will be powered at least in part by the sun after the installation of solar panels and a solar water heater next spring, CNN reports. The system will provide some electricity and heat water for the first family. "If it has anything like the effect of... More »

Solar Plane Completes 24-Hour Flight

Team proves sun can power plane more or less indefinitely

(AP) - An experimental solar-powered plane landed safely today after completing its first 24-hour test flight, proving that the aircraft can collect enough energy from the sun during the day to stay aloft all night. Pilot Andre Borschberg eased the Solar Impulse onto the runway at Payerne airfield in Switzerland at exactly... More »

Obama Unveils $2B for Solar Projects

Aims to create thousands of jobs at a time we need it, he says

(AP) - The government is handing out nearly $2 billion for new solar plants that President Obama says will create thousands of jobs and increase renewable energy sources. Obama announced the initiative in his weekly address today, saying the money is part of his plan to bring new industries to the US.... More »

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