Energy & Green Tech
A space solar power prototype that was launched into orbit in January is operational and has demonstrated its ability to wirelessly transmit power in space and to beam detectable power to Earth for the first time.
Jun 1, 2023
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27
Energy & Green Tech
EPFL researchers have built a pilot-scale solar reactor that produces usable heat and oxygen, in addition to generating hydrogen with unprecedented efficiency for its size.
Apr 17, 2023
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1668
Engineering
A microwave technology invented at Macquarie University will improve the manufacture of solar cells and make them easier to recycle.
Apr 14, 2023
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270
Engineering
The impact of multi-story building design considerations on embodied emissions, cost, and operational energy has been revealed for the first time. Using a model, researchers estimate that 28% to 44% of yearly heating and ...
Mar 22, 2023
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6
Energy & Green Tech
Large-scale, effective, and passive: these descriptions are aptly given to the integrated radiative and evaporative chiller (IREC), designed and tested by researchers at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China. The goal of ...
Mar 21, 2023
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26
Engineering
Global energy trends are shifting toward digitalization, decarbonization and decentralization. Global warming and climate anomalies attributable to environmental pollution featured in the daily news indicate that the threats ...
Mar 7, 2023
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7
Engineering
From water-repellent to water-loving with ultraviolet (UV) light, surfaces are being developed that protect panels and glass facades from expensive and time-consuming cleanings.
Feb 14, 2023
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16
Energy & Green Tech
To tackle global warming, engineers have been trying to develop increasingly advanced technologies that can generate and store electrical energy more sustainably. The most renowned among these technologies are solar cells, ...
Hardware
Most space satellites are powered by photovoltaic cells that convert sunlight to electricity. Exposure to certain types of radiation present in orbit can damage the devices, degrading their performance and limiting their ...
Nov 8, 2022
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70
Electronics & Semiconductors
Europa is more than just one of Jupiter's many moons—it's also one of most promising places in the solar system to look for extraterrestrial life. Under 10 kilometers of ice is a liquid water ocean that could sustain life. ...
Oct 1, 2022
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58
Sunlight, in the broad sense, is the total spectrum of the electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun. On Earth, sunlight is filtered through the atmosphere, and the solar radiation is obvious as daylight when the Sun is above the horizon. Near the poles in summer, the days are longer and the nights are shorter or non-existent. In the winter at the poles the nights are longer and for some periods of time, sunlight may not occur at all. When the direct radiation is not blocked by clouds, it is experienced as sunshine, a combination of bright light and heat. Radiant heat directly produced by the radiation of the sun is different from the increase in atmospheric temperature due to the radiative heating of the atmosphere by the sun's radiation. Sunlight may be recorded using a sunshine recorder, pyranometer or pyrheliometer. Sunlight takes about 8.3 minutes to reach the Earth. The World Meteorological Organization defines sunshine as direct irradiance from the Sun measured on the ground of at least 120 watts per square metre.
Direct sunlight has a luminous efficacy of about 93 lumens per watt of radiant flux, which includes infrared, visible, and ultra-violet light. Bright sunlight provides luminance of approximately 100,000 candela per square meter at the Earth's surface.
Sunlight is a key factor in photosynthesis, a process crucially important for life on Earth.
This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA
