Technology Info Crunch

Earth & Energy Tesla Just Unveiled Its Newest Solar Panels   Tesla IN BRIEF Tesla just updated their website to include images of their new low-profile solar panels. The panels integrate seamlessly with the Tesla Powerwall and can be ordered this month for production in the summer. TESLA DOMINATES ENERGY Last weekend, Tesla updated their website’s  “Energy” section  to release images of their new  low-profile solar panels  made by  Panasonic . Tesla has been making  news with their increased focus on green-energy innovations , and this fresh take on solar panels for preexisting homes and other buildings gives more people the option to go off-grid. These panels use invisible mounting hardware and integrated front skirts to blend into your roof seamlessly for a cleaner, more streamlined look. This understated system was  originally created by Zep Solar , which was acquired by SolarCity before  Tesla acquired t...

Earth & Energy A Company in Japan Just Broke the World Record for Solar Panel Efficiency   Pixaba A team from the Japanese company Kaneko has recently announced breaking the efficiency record of solar panels—which now stands at 26.6 percent. THE RISE OF SOLAR POWER Solar power is certainly on the rise around the world. There are massive solar power generating installations across Asia, with countries  like India   and China  taking turns being the home of the largest arrays. Even the United States is making some  massive strides  with this source of renewable energy. In fact, solar energy is faring better than coal—even in terms of the economy. There are  more people employed  by the solar industry than in coal, and the  price of solar power  continues to fall. A trend that is likely to continue—especially if we continue to improve the efficiency of harvesting the sun’s energy. To that end, researchers in Japan are doing th...

Robots & Machines Caltech’s 2500 Orbiting Solar Panels Could Provide Earth With Limitless Energy IN BRIEF The Space Solar Power Initiative (SSPI), a collaboration between Caltech and Northrup Grumman, has developed a system of lightweight solar power tiles which can convert solar energy to radio waves and can be placed in orbit to beam power to an energy-thirsty Earth. SOAKING IN THE SUN’S RAYS One of the greatest challenges facing the 21st Century is the issue of power—how to generate enough of it, how to manufacture it cheaply and with the least amount of harmful side-effects, and how to get it to users. The solutions will have to be very creative—rather like what the  Space Solar Power Initiative  (SSPI), a partnership between Caltech and Northrup Grumman, has devised. Prototype of the “multifunctional tile.” Credit: Caltech “What we’re proposing, somewhat audaciously, is to develop the technology that would enable one to build the largest-ever-built space struct...