Solar Plane Makes World's First Solar Powered Night Flight

This summer, pilot and CEO of Solar Impulse Andre Borschberg landed his solar powered aircraft in Switzerland 26 hours after completing the world's first solar powered night flight. Until now, most solar powered aircraft had been unmanned, and none had attempted a night flight.

A technological marvel

The Solar Impulse HB-SIA reached a maximum speed of 68 knots and averaging in at about 23 knots. 12,000 solar cells line its 193-foot wings. Energy was stored during the day, and then used after nightfall to complete the night flight.

A bright future

In the wake of this monumental achievement in green technology, hopes run high for future endeavors. Plans have already been made for a solar circumnavigation of the globe in 2012 using the current Solar Impulse plane as a prototype.

Perpetual flight a possibility

Reuters Magazine quoted Borscheberg as saying, "We are on the verge of perpetual flight." This has long been a dream of green and mainstream science alike. If perpetual flight could be achieved, layovers in intermediate cities would be a thing of the past. More critically, the massive amount of fuel used to power commercial jets would be greatly reduced or even eliminated. 

Green technology enthusiasts should keep an eye on the Solar Impulse Project in the coming years, as they will undoubtedly spearhead the first wave of the green aviation movement.

Guest Blogger Bio: Alexis Bonari is a freelance writer and blog junkie. She is currently a resident blogger at onlinedegrees.org, researching areas of online education. In her spare time, she enjoys square-foot gardening, swimming, and avoiding her laptop.

Solar now cheaper than nuclear energy

A new study out of Duke University says the cost of solar energy is now less than the cost of nuclear. “In the past year, the lines have crossed in North Carolina,” say study authors John Blackburn and Sam Cunningham. “Electricity from new solar installations is now cheaper than electricity from proposed new nuclear plants.”

As a summary from The Energy Collective points out, a photovoltaic system today costs just 50 percent of what it did in 1998. The report, says the Energy Collective, "is significant not only because it shows solar to be a cheaper source of energy than nuclear. The results are also important because, despite the Senate’s failure to pass a climate and energy bill this year, taxpayers now bear the burden of putting carbon into the atmosphere through a variety of hidden charges – or externalities, as economists call them. Fossil fuels currently account for 70 percent of the electricity generated in the U.S. annually. (Nuclear generates 20 percent.)"

Compact florescent bulbs can lose up to 40 percent of brightness over lifetime

Compact fluorescent lightbulbs could lose up to 40 per cent of their brightness over the next few years, according to the UK's Institution of Engineering and Technology.

Even a good quality CFL could lose 20 per cent of its light over its 8,000-hour lifespan - while cheaper bulbs could dim even more.

'Consumers could end up with a CFL nearing the end of its life that emits just 60 per cent as much light as a supposedly equivalent incandescent bulb,' the report says. That means a CFL that begins life as bright as a traditional 100 watt bulb, could become as dim as a 60 watt bulb.

Cleantech conference features modlet and much more

I'm on the exhibition floor of the Cleantech 2010 conference in Anaheim, California, looking at hundreds of green products and technologies. One standout is the modlet, a $40 device that allows you to monitor and control how much electricity your appliances are using. 

Its advantage over the competition is that it interfaces with your laptop so you can monitor multiple appliances (or anything else you care to plug into it). You can even control appliances remotely, turning them on and off from your laptop. 

Erika Diamond (pictured), VP of Business Development at thinkeco, told me they're also working on working on apps so you can control your appliances from your iPhone or iPad. Look for the modlet to be available by the end of 2010.

Overall, the Cleantech exhibition floor featured over twenty green building products and technologies, compared to zero when I first took part in 2007. The green building paper session I chaired today was our best-attended one since we started offering them three years ago, and attendance at the green building workshop I gave yesterday was twice last year's. 

It's terrific to see interest in green building growing every year, and new products like the modlet helping consumers save money and energy.

Cleantech 2010 to feature green building technologies & opportunities

Next week I'll be in Los Angeles for Cleantech 2010, presenting an all-day workshop on Green Building: Technologies & Opportunities and chairing the conference's green building sessions. This will be my fourth Cleantech, and it's a great event, drawing over 5,000 technology and business leaders and experts from academia, investment, government, startups and Fortune 1,000 companies.

I'm proud to have founded the green building portion of this conference, and seen it grow over the years. Green building is one of the most urgent environmental issues of our time. Buildings produce 40 percent of our carbon emissions, 40 percent of our solid waste, and consume 40 percent of our energy. Now, they're also leading the effort to save the planet.

There's also an excellent trade floor featuring hundreds of the latest technologies and innovations in clean and green technology. I hope to see you there or at a future Cleantech event!