Hacker News with Generative AI: Solar Energy

Solar Energy Claims Big U.S. Gain in 2024 (nytimes.com)
The U.S. power grid added more capacity from solar energy in 2024 than from any other source in a single year in more than two decades, according to a new industry report released on Tuesday.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Energy Industry, United States
9 points by lxm 9 days ago | 2 comments
Deregulated energy markets accelerate solar adoption (seanobannon.substack.com)
Solar power has become the cheapest source of new electricity generation in many parts of the U.S., but adoption depends heavily on market structure. Deregulated markets, where entrepreneurs and independent power producers can directly pursue profitable opportunities, have rapidly embraced solar, while regulated utilities remain slow to change due to legacy investments and bureaucratic oversight. To accelerate the shift to renewables and a cost competitive future, the U.S. should pursue greater deregulation, enabling private capital to build a cleaner, larger-capacity grid.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Energy Policy, Deregulation, Market Structure
71 points by seanobannon 9 days ago | 180 comments
Understanding Solar Energy (construction-physics.com)
The biggest energy story of the last fifteen years is the rise of solar photovoltaics, also known as solar PV or simply solar panels.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Construction, Physics
261 points by chmaynard 14 days ago | 258 comments
Solar power has exploded in popularity as wind lags, report shows (usatoday.com)
Renewable energy production reached record amounts in 2024, producing 24% of U.S. electricity, an annual update on sustainable energy finds.
Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Wind Energy, Climate Change, Energy Production
18 points by doener 37 days ago | 6 comments
Thermoelectric Solar Panel (simplifier.neocities.org)
Of all available sources of energy on earth, the light of the sun is the most ubiquitous; however, as a source of heat it is somewhat difficult to utilize due to its diffuse nature.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Technology
50 points by adrianN 37 days ago | 60 comments
Texas Lawmakers Scramble to Stop Solar Energy but It Just Keeps Coming (cleantechnica.com)
Last year was another banner year for solar energy in Texas, and 2025 is heading for more of the same despite the persistent threat of anti-renewable legislation.
Solar Energy, Texas, Renewable Energy, Legislation
12 points by miles 37 days ago | 4 comments
California off to a strong clean electricity start with solar up 33.8% (pv-magazine-usa.com)
California has kicked off 2025 with impressive clean electricity generation, marked by a decline in gas use, increased wind and battery output, and—last Sunday—solar meeting nearly 100% of grid demand in the middle of winter.
California, Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Clean Energy, Climate Change
11 points by martinpw 40 days ago | 4 comments
Aqueous-based recycling of perovskite photovoltaics (nature.com)
Cumulative silicon photovoltaic (PV) waste highlights the importance of considering waste recycling before the commercialization of emerging PV technologies1,2.
Science, Solar Energy, Materials Science, Recycling
26 points by PaulHoule 40 days ago | 8 comments
Japan's $1.5B bet on ultra-thin solar cells in challenge to China (ft.com)
Japan, Solar Energy, China, Technology, Business
15 points by bookofjoe 45 days ago | 2 comments
Smart fabric heats up under the sun (uwaterloo.ca)
Waterloo researchers develop cloth that can heat up by 30 degrees Celsius after 10 minutes of sun exposure
Materials Science, Solar Energy, Innovation
37 points by gnabgib 60 days ago | 40 comments
Solar Overtakes Coal in EU (semafor.com)
Solar power has overtaken coal in the European Union for the first time, according to research released Thursday.
Renewable Energy, EU, Coal, Solar Energy
18 points by belter 68 days ago | 16 comments
Show HN: Optics Challenge – Design a solar concentrator for a non-round sun (nonimaging-conference.org)
The challenge: Design a reflective solar concentrator with the highest possible efficiency, but designed for a sun with the shape "XX" instead of the regular round shape.
Solar Energy, Optics, Engineering, Design Challenges
10 points by hakonjdjohnsen 87 days ago | 0 comments
Dutch Households with solar panels face significant revenue loss (nltimes.nl)
Households in the Netherlands with solar panels are seeing their annual returns shrink by 300 euros to nearly 500 euros due to rising feed-in charges and lower solar yields in 2024.
Solar Energy, Netherlands, Economics, Energy Policy
6 points by belter 87 days ago | 4 comments
Despite rising domestic demand, India's solar modules export will go up by 2030 (indiatimes.com)
India, Solar Energy, Exports, Domestic Demand
4 points by rustoo 99 days ago | 0 comments
How balcony solar is taking off (theguardian.com)
“If 1.5 million Germans have bought solar balcony kits there must be something in it,” he says.
Solar Energy, Germany, Renewable Energy
5 points by doener 104 days ago | 1 comments
Solar desalination and electrolysis system with energy recovery and storage (sciencedirect.com)
Agricultural activities in remote desert locations face significant challenges due to high water and energy demands and the lack of necessary infrastructure.
Solar Energy, Desalination, Water Management, Energy Storage
8 points by PaulHoule 105 days ago | 0 comments
Ann Arbor hopes to bring rooftop solar to the masses by creating a utility (bridgemi.com)
In the shadow of a presidential election dominated by rhetoric about job-killing EVs and the virtues of fossil fuels, the residents of one Michigan city voted this fall to embrace solar energy.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Local Government, Michigan
7 points by toomuchtodo 109 days ago | 2 comments
A surprise solar boom reveals a fatal flaw in our climate change projections (vox.com)
When the satellites zoomed in, you could see the panels gleaming from space. Pairing images taken miles above the Earth with Chinese customs records, BloombergNEF solar analyst Jenny Chase and her team discovered this year that the rooftops of homes and factories across Pakistan are blanketed with solar panels.
Climate Change, Solar Energy, Technology, Research
30 points by rntn 122 days ago | 29 comments
Solar is the fastest-growing energy technology in history (bsky.app)
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Energy Technology, History
24 points by JumpCrisscross 123 days ago | 10 comments
Sol-Ark manufacturer reportedly disables all Deye inverters in the US (solarboi.com)
Seemingly at the drop of a hat the morning of Friday, Nov 15th, Deye-branded inverters across the US were reportedly intentionally bricked with the message:
Solar Energy, Hardware, Manufacturing, Technology, News
290 points by walterbell 124 days ago | 307 comments
India adds 20 GW of solar in 12 months to October (pv-magazine.com)
India added 30 GW of new power capacity in the 12 months to October 2024, bringing cumulative installations to 454 GW, according to SBI Capital Markets. Renewables accounted for 22.5 GW of the additions, with solar alone contributing 20 GW.
India, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Power Generation
10 points by rustoo 124 days ago | 0 comments
Global Solar Council announces 2 terawatt milestone achieved for solar (globalsolarcouncil.org)
November 8, London – The Global Solar Council leads the worldwide solar industry today in the celebration of achieving 2 TW of installed solar PV capacity against the backdrop of a Donald Trump presidency in the U.S. and a pivotal COP29 slated to begin next week in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Climate Change, International Organizations
45 points by mooreds 125 days ago | 26 comments
Surprise solar surge in Pakistan shocks experts, and grid (dw.com)
Pakistan has grown its solar energy capacity by an astounding amount in a remarkably short space of time. The shock surge has given residents the power to survive blackouts, but it threatens to disrupt the grid.
Pakistan, Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Power Grid, Energy
4 points by rustoo 126 days ago | 1 comments
Why India's latest Sun mission finding is crucial for the world (bbc.com)
Scientists in India have reported the “first significant result” from Aditya-L1, the country’s first solar observation mission in space.
Space Exploration, India, Science, Solar Energy
5 points by tartoran 126 days ago | 1 comments
Why everyone missed solar's exponential growth (exponentialview.co)
Hi, it’s Azeem. Here’s a shocking reality check: every major energy forecaster has been wrong about solar power uptake. So wrong, in fact, that when I recently offered a $1,000 bet on solar’s explosive growth, not a single expert would take me up on it. This isn’t just a forecasting error – it’s a systematic blind spot.
Solar Energy, Energy Forecasting, Technology, Investing
46 points by xbmcuser 133 days ago | 41 comments
Solar-powered desalination system requires no extra batteries (news.mit.edu)
MIT engineers have built a new desalination system that runs with the rhythms of the sun.
Solar Energy, Desalination, Engineering, Sustainability
132 points by bentocorp 136 days ago | 45 comments
I built an expandable solar roof for my Tesla (reddit.com)
Hello Reddit, this is an update of the last year worth of work on a personal project of mine -- placing an expandable solar array on my Tesla. And like all the past builds, the blueprints will be online for anyone to access. The last prototype Beta2 had lots of great feedback, and I am excited to share RC1 (Release Candidate 1).
DIY, Solar Energy, Tesla, Open Source, Renewable Energy
6 points by somid3 138 days ago | 3 comments
100-MW solar farm just broke ground in Wisconsin (electrek.co)
National Grid Renewables has broken ground on its 100 MW Apple River Solar Project in Polk County, Wisconsin.
Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Wisconsin, Project Updates
43 points by belter 138 days ago | 57 comments
Csiro opens $6.8M printing facility to make flexible solar panels (abc.net.au)
Solar panels that can be printed out like newspapers and rolled up to fit in your pocket are one step closer thanks to a new development by the national science agency.
Solar Energy, Printing, Technology, Innovation
5 points by CharlesW 148 days ago | 0 comments
Toyota to buy clean power from a $1.1B solar farm in Texas (electrek.co)
Enbridge, a Canadian energy company, just announced it’s moving forward with an 815-megawatt (MW) solar project called Sequoia in Texas.
Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Texas, Business, Energy
62 points by peutetre 151 days ago | 44 comments