Link: http://www.energyrace.com/commentary/what_does_a_ton_of_co2_look_like/

What difference can one solar roof make in the world? Last night the PEMCO Solar Pie roof broadcast that twelve tons of carbon had not been released into our shared airspace. TWELVE TONS? What does that mean for you and me? What does that look like? Why does that matter?

We thought we would take a minute to reflect on that.

How do we quantify the good that a Solar Pie solar roof produces? How do we get our arms around the volume of carbon not being released into the atmosphere?

Dave Ames a science teacher at Cohasset High School in Cohasset, MA set out to demonstrate what a ton of carbon looks like. In 2007 Dave Ames along with his 9th grade physics class built a cube 27 feet wide by 27 feet high by 27 feet deep. One ton of carbon would fill this cube.

Just imagine how big a cube we would need to hold twelve tons of carbon. Try to visualize a cube 324 feet wide by 324 feet high by 324 feet deep filled with carbon. That is the amount not being released into our atmosphere, in our neighborhoods, not being washed into our waterways.

That is the power of Solar Pie thirty-six panel roof on top of the PEMCO building.

Way to go PEMCO. It's all good.

While we love rooftop solar panels, there's an exciting alternative on the way for people who want to convert their home to solar power.

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, in Washington's Tri-Cities, is perfecting thin, flexible photovoltaics that could cover an entire roof like shingles. They're waterproof and last 25 years, just like today's silicon solar panels.

From ScienceDaily:

"There's a lot of wasted space on rooftops that could actually be used to generate power," said Mark Gross, a senior scientist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. "Flexible solar panels could easily become integrated into the architecture of commercial buildings and homes. Solar panels have had limited success because they've been difficult and expensive to install."

We at Solar Pie are excited about this research, especially since it's happening right in our home state! The laboratory's goal is to lower the cost of manufacturing solar panels. The project is being funded, in part, by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Via ScienceDaily.