Solar Breakfast

Scientists believe that fly eyes are perfectly shaped for manufacturing efficient solar cells. Specifically, copying the eye of the Blowfly would allow solar cells to "collect sunlight from a larger area than just light that falls directly on a flat surface." More »

While many hurdles are keeping us stuck here on Earth, our solar system's deadly radiation is chief among them. But scientists now think that a thumb-sized magnet could produce a force field big enough to shield an entire spaceship. More »

Less than two months after being unfurled in space, Japan's IKAROS solar sail accomplished its ambitious aim—becoming the first spacecraft to travel in space, powered by the sun. Now, it's demonstrated its fine steering ability. More »

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.

This week Inhabitat brought you a surge of renewable energy news as groundbreaking projects supercharged every corner of the world. London officially crowned the first skyscraper with built-in wind turbines while Sicily generated solar power in the dead of night with the world's first solar plant that stores energy using molten salt. And speaking of solar power, China is heating things up with the largest building-integrated photovoltaic plant on the planet.

In transportation news, we scored an exclusive interview with auto manufacturer Edison2, who is currently coming up aces with three ultra-efficient vehicles in the final stages of the Progressive Auto X Prize -- and we watched high-tech aviation soar to new heights as Airbus unveiled its vision for a fuel-efficient aircraft of the future.

Finally, we were wowed by the world's first biomass consuming robot, which actually eats, excretes, and can run for a whole week unsupervised. If you're thinking "I can do that" then we encourage you to try - why not start training with this exercise-inducing treadmill desk? Don't forget to wear your spiffy glow-in-the-dark performance wear; your co-workers will love it.

Inhabitat's Week in Green: fuel efficiency flies high, turbines touch the sky, and salt that stores sunlight originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 25 Jul 2010 22:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you've got the space at your next BBQ, the Boxman is a swanky alternative to the plebeian tent or—gag!—lowly picnic table. Made from a converted shipping container, you're guaranteed to make your friends and neighbors feel inadequate. More »

Continue reading Zephyr solar powered UAV lands after a fortnight in the air (whatever that means)

Zephyr solar powered UAV lands after a fortnight in the air (whatever that means) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 13:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You might not have expected the future to look like your granddad's groovy camper van, but take a closer look here and you'll find that this is indeed nothing like your forefather's people carrier. The VisLab team from the University of Parma have taken a fleet of Piaggio Porter Electric vehicles, strapped them with an array of cameras, lasers and other sensors, and topped them off with solar panels to keep the electronics powered. Oh, and lest we forgot to mention: the vans are (mostly) autonomous. VIAC (or VisLab Intercontinental Autonomous Challenge) is the grand name given to their big demonstration: an 8,000-mile, 3-month tour that will ultimately find them arriving in Shanghai, China, having set off from Milan this Tuesday. You can follow the day-by-day development on the blog below, though we're still being told that practical driverless road cars are a measure of decades, not years, away.

Continue reading Driverless vans set off on intercontinental trek from Italy to China (video)

Driverless vans set off on intercontinental trek from Italy to China (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 09:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Compliant Shading Enclosure concept automatically regulates the amount of shade, shadow and light that comes into a window. How? There's a curtain (the green thing) in between the glass panes that's programmed to open or close depending on the temperature More »

Skeptics of modern technology, behold: a newly opened solar plant in Sicily is able to continue generating electricity long after the sun goes down. The trick lies in the plant's use of salt to store up heat for later use. More »

Two years ago I told you about Bellavista, the stunning treehouse community in Costa Rica's forests that looks like the Ewoks' village in Endor. They just upgraded it with 7.2mbps 3G access, and now they run 100% on solar power. More »