IKEA teamed up with social business Little Sun to launch two solar-powered LED lamps. Launching April 2023 in select markets, both models have designs inspired by the Sun and how the Earth rotates around it. The light source is shaped like a half-sphere, which is furthger enhanced through the reflection of a mirror to create a shining sun.
Finally, the Aptera Launch Edition solar EV is going into production. It comes equipped with 700 watts of proprietary solar technology that is good for 40-miles per day using just sun power alone. There are in-wheel Elaphe electric motors in each wheel that generate a combined 171 hp, enabling it to accelerate from 0-60 mph in 4.0 seconds, while topping out at 101 mph.
Photo credit: Brenda Ahearn / Michigan Engineering, Communications and Marketing
University of Michigan researchers have developed an innovative new kind of solar panel that can harvest cheap, sustainable hydrogen through artificial photosynthesis. In other words, this new process is around 10-times more efficient than previous water-splitting experiments of its kind while also driving down the cost of sustainable hydrogen.
The Sunswift 7 solar electric vehicle would be perfect with this solar-powered floating home, as both help you live completely off-the-grid. However, the former was built by students at UNSW Sydney, and it just set a new Guinness World Record by traveling over 621-miles (1000-kilomters) on a single charge in under 12-hours.
If the U-Boat Worx NEMO 2 personal submarine is a little too pricey for your budget, you could always buy a sailboat for $23,000 and transform it into a solar-powered floating home. Journeyman and sailor Daniel did just that after he picked up a 1984 Beneteau Idylle sailboat. It may not be the most luxurious of living space, but this sailboat does offer him the opportunity the maximize the amount of time he can spend exploring off-grid.
Photo credit: Melanie Gonick, MIT
Living in a floating solar home is nice, but imagine if you could cover it in paper-thin solar cells? MIT engineers have developed just that, and these fabric solar cells can turn nearly any surface into a power source. Each one is thinner than a human hair and glued to a strong, lightweight fabric, making it a breeze to install on fixed surfaces.
First, there was the Starburst House, now Jeep Japan has unveiled their very own modular, solar-powered container house designed for off-the-grid living. The idea is that you would be able to quickly pack up its foldable sides and move to another location without having to worry about disassembling anything.
There’s solar-powered headphones, and soon, Caltech’s Space Solar Power Project (SSPP), which aims to provide a global supply of clean and affordable energy. It would consist of a constellation of modular spacecraft designed to collect sunlight, transform it into electricity, and then wirelessly transmit the power to wherever it is needed.
Charlie built an off-the-grid floating home 25-years-ago after retiring from his foresting job and has been living there ever since. His wife Ellen joined him in 2016 on this solar-powered living space that spans 900-square-feet over 2-levels. Most of the wood used in the build was milled by Charlie himself, while a hydraulic splitter can be found in the workstation to make splitting the pieces easier for additions.
The new solar-powered Adidas RPT-02 Sol wireless headphones may not be the first, but are one of the only with Exeger’s Powerfoyle technology built into the headband. Powerfoyle is unlike typical solar cells, as it a light-cell material that can draw power from both natural and artificial light sources. It’s so efficient that a full charge is good for up to 80-hours of continuous use.