M&M chocolate candies just took on a new shade of green. Mars Candy recently installed the nation’s largest photovoltaic array at a food production facility in Hackettstown, New Jersey. The 2.2-megawatt solar system is made up of 28,680 solar power panels in a field next to the candy plant.

Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) will operate and maintain the solar power plant. The resulting solar electricity will be purchased by Mars through a power purchase agreement. The “solar garden” will provide 20 percent of the Mars facility’s energy needs at peak output. The solar modules are thin-film panels provided by First Solar, a Tempe, Arizona-based international leader in thin-film solar production. …continue reading Solar Candy? From Mars?

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Ah, the tailgate. Fall mornings spent in impromptu living rooms arranged in the beds of pickup trucks, afternoons playing Hacky Sack, entire days spent with radio blaring and laughter soaring. It seems there’s always some reason to drop the tailgate or open the hatch and let weekend freedom roar. To gather the crew, crack some brew, munch on some nachos and cheer like the game depended on it…because it does.

The tailgate party is almost as American a pastime as football or baseball itself. It’s also a day when everyone wants to stand out. Painted faces, wild costumes, creative gaming and pickup football games are kings. Now, imagine if you will, among all those olfactory and tasty memories, what a stand-out experience a solar-powered tailgate party would be!

When you think about it, it makes sense. You have an entire day spent outside cooking, eating, drinking and talking – all things best done under the sun. And it’s surprisingly easy to do! You can incorporate solar power into any aspect of a tailgate party, from brews to brats to burgers. Sound a little strange? Here’s how you do it. …continue reading The Ultimate Solar Tailgate Party

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As if solar energy wasn’t already useful enough, it turns out solar radiation exerts a small amount of thrust on objects in its path. It won’t send your solar panels flying south for the winter, but it could one day revolutionize interstellar travel. The idea is solar sailing, and it’s not a new one. Attempts have been made over several decades to literally sail through outer space, but none as of yet have been especially successful. However, one organization, the Planetary Society, is not giving up – and for good reason, as the potential benefits of a successful solar sail are staggering.

What are Solar Sails?

Solar sails are made up of super thin metal, plastic or composite materials that, upon reflecting solar radiation, experience a tiny amount of thrust from each photon of light. This force is imperceptibly small on earth, but in the vacuum of space, its effect is cumulative and can provide enough thrust to propel a sail at speeds reaching a high fraction of the speed of light. Much like sailboats, solar sails are steerable. Adjustments to the sails change the way the solar radiation is reflected and thus the direction in which the craft moves.
…continue reading Hoist Up the LightSail-1: New Solar Sailing Project Underway

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