Solar Kids - Solar from a Smart Kid's Point of View

Welcome to part the third of the solar quiz! Check the rules from part one here. Again, if you haven't participated quite yet, please do so! Last time's answers: 3. The most commonly used element in a solar panel is silicon. 4. False! The surface of… more »

And now for the update: Stephanie with 40 out of 40 points is in the lead! Heather with 20 out of 40 points is following closely behind! Remember, if you haven't yet, please participate and try to win the tchotchke! The questions are getting toug… more »

Welcome to the second round of the solar quiz! Check the rules from Part One here. Even if you haven't yet, you can still participate, so please comment! The previous answers: 1. A typical solar panel weighs as much as a medium size dog. 2. When work… more »

So far, our ranking is like so: Stephanie - 2/2 correct Remember, that even if you haven't tried yet, you can start with the new questions today. You still have a chance! Please participate! more »

Today marks the beginning of a great contest - a solar quiz! The winner will be awarded a to-be-announced tchotchke. I can tell you that it is really awesome, and I have one too. There will be ten questions in all… more »

Reread the previous post! To finally destroy the myth of solar panels being very fragile, look at this image on the left. Solar panels are actually strong enough that you could stand on them. I wouldn't recommend this, though, because you could slip, f… more »

The long awaited second installment in the Misconceptions series! This time I will tackle the the misconception that solar panels are really fragile and break super easily. Let me shatter this myth for you. Behold this marvelous video!        … more »

Due to the not-so-ancient bloggers' dilemma of "Does anyone actually read my blog? Eh. . . Probably not," I am always surprised and thrilled when I get comments. It means that somebody, somewhere, is reading my work. Now I have a big heads up: someone… more »

Just recently, my Girl Scout troop came over to my house to learn about solar. We are a troop of Cadettes and learning about solar helped us earn an interest project badge. And so my father and I taught them some basics about solar panels.First we went… more »

As the new year begins - 2011 - I  shall tell a tale of three grocery stores and my adventures buying food inside them. Grocery Store A was the most common type of grocery store.  The fruits and vegetables did have labels stating where they had come fr… more »

Yesterday was the Harvest Festival. It is a small fair at my school that is put on every year by the eighth graders. I was one of them this year! I was a parade co-chair with two other girls. We organized younger kids into parades to be judged by teacher… more »

This morning was foggy, but that did not dampen the spirits of anyone going to the tenth annual Solar Power International. This year it was in Los Angeles in the LA Convention Center. Today marks the first day of it. It goes on during tomorrow and Thursd… more »

Read last post to remember what happened. What do you think will happen next? The fan still worked, just not quite as well. We could tell that the panel was still generating power in our cloudy day by using a voltmeter. A voltmeter measures voltage.… more »

Many Southern Californians probably already know this, but if  not you will be shocked. In Los Angeles today it was  113°F (or 39.4°C). This sets the record for highest heat in Los Angeles. In Pasadena, where I live, it is over that. Very hot, I can tell… more »

Today I will be starting with 'Solar panels only work in bright sun'. That would be terribly inefficient if that were genuinely the case. Think about it.… more »

Here begins a new set of posts. What are these posts about? They are about misconceptions about solar. I'm sure you have heard many rumors:It takes more energy to make solar panels than they will ever generate...Solar panels are very delicate and… more »

The Lego Robotics Team from St. Philips School in Pasadena is part of a national competition started by Dean Kamen called FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). Each year there is a theme that all teams have to conform to. Th… more »

Before you can learn about all the awesome green and solar stuff, you need to know about solar some!The basic of the basic: Solar panels change sunlight into energy, which powers your home.Want something more complex? Photons are light particles that… more »