Have you ever heard of a synchrophasor? It may sound like a word out of science fiction, but these mailbox-sized devices are already changing the electrical grid as we know it. The grid was born over a century ago, at a time when our needs were simpler and our demand much lower. More complex needs are… Keep reading →
Below are brief summaries of the agenda items for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s October 15, 2015 meeting.
In 2014, the United States brought online as much solar energy every three weeks as it did in all of 2008. Demand for solar electricity is driving this growth in capacity as more customers explore options for powering their daily lives with solar energy. However, not every rooftop is able to host a solar energy… Keep reading →
THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SOLAR DECATHLON 2015 IS JUST A WEEK AWAY — BUT WHAT EXACTLY IS A SOLAR DECATHLON, AND HOW DO YOU WIN? Let’s start with the basics. The Solar Decathlon is a collegiate competition to create beautiful, affordable, energy-efficient solar-powered houses. The competition involves teams of students from colleges and universities… Keep reading →
In the City of Boulder, Colorado, a newly upgraded hydropower facility is generating clean, renewable electricity for thousands of area residents and businesses. Originally built in 1910, the completely modernized Boulder Canyon Hydroelectric Facility will provide 583,000-megawatt hours of renewable energy — enough to power about 1,000 homes each year. To optimize performance at Boulder Canyon, two… Keep reading →
Starbucks, Wal-Mart, Goldman Sachs and Johnson & Johnson are among the companies making the pledge to convert completely to renewable energy. [CNBC] Senate Democratic leaders on Tuesday introduced a measure intended to signal their support of President Obama’s climate change agenda. [The NY Times] An inventor at Boeing believes the roar from aircraft engines can be harnessed to produce… Keep reading →
Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) is a New York initiative that would create a radically different electric system and change the way power is generated and distributed in the state. Utilities would direct the distribution of electricity produced by thousands of smaller entities. REV encompasses areas such as regulatory reform; load/peak demand management; consumer management… Keep reading →
In the City of Boulder, Colorado, a newly upgraded hydropower facility is generating clean, renewable electricity for thousands of area residents and businesses. Originally built in 1910, the completely modernized Boulder Canyon Hydroelectric Facility will provide 583,000-megawatt hours of renewable energy — enough to power about 1,000 homes each year. To optimize performance at Boulder Canyon, two… Keep reading →
We live on a water planet. Roughly 71 percent of the Earth is covered in the stuff, and it’s constantly in motion — tides surging rhythmically; powerful currents coursing beneath the surface; waves rolling across oceans and crashing against continents. All that motion produces mind-boggling quantities of kinetic energy, just a stone’s throw from some… Keep reading →
