With momentum building for solar energy in the United States, we want to talk about solar with you. Join us this Wednesday, February 12, at 1 p.m. ET, for a live #AskEnergy Twitter Q&A on all things solar.

To join the conversation, submit your questions in advance and during the live Twitter Q&A by emailing newmedia@hq.doe.gov, posting in the comments on the Energy Department’s Facebook or Google+ pages, or tweeting @ENERGY using #askEnergy.

We’ll catch you up on what has been an exciting time for the U.S. solar industry. As President Obama highlighted during his State of the Union address, every four minutes a new American home or business goes solar. Last year, there were more than 400,000 solar projects operating across the country — supplying enough clean, renewable electricity to power 1.7 million average American homes.

This week’s Twitter Q&A gives you the opportunity to learn more about the growing significance of this dynamic industry. Whether you’re interested in solar technology basics or the latest game-changing solar innovations or in super-sized solar projects that provide energy on a massive scale, now is your opportunity to ask.

Answering your questions, from the basic to the complex, will be one of our leading solar experts from the Department of Energy:

• Minh Le, Director of the Energy Department’s SunShot Initiative. Le can discuss the Energy Department’s innovative approaches to driving down the cost of solar energy technologies, making them more accessible and affordable for American families and businesses.

Throughout the rest of the week we’ll share more solar updates on Energy.gov — including news about Ivanpah, the world’s largest concentrating solar power plant, and our SunShot Initiative’s efforts in advancing cost-competitive solar power. We look forward to sharing these updates with you and in answering your #AskEnergy solar questions!