8th Grader’s Revolutionary $12 Energy Invention

8th Grader Hannah Herbst was recently named America’s Top Young Scientist of the year at the 2015 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge.

Her revolutionary invention, named BEACON ( Bringing Electricity Access to Countries Through Ocean Energy Collection ), is a low-cost method of producing energy from ocean currents.

Herbst told Business Insider that she was inspired by her 9-year-old pen pal in Ethiopia who has limited access to electricity. “I can’t even imagine a day without electricity,” said Herbst.

The 15-year-old inventor from Florida came up with a floating probe with a 3D-printed propeller, a small pulley, and a hydroelectric generator.

It makes use of the probe to convert the natural movements of the ocean into usable electricity, and it only costs $12 to make!

Milwaukee Judge Rejects Utility Rate Increase

Last year, the PSC ruled in favor of Milwaukee-based utility We Energies to set up a monthly fee of $20 for utility customers who generate some of their own power through rooftop solar.

Solar advocates, however, have just been granted a huge victory as Dane County Circuit Court Judge Peter Anderson has rejected the fee from kicking in this January.

The Wisconsin solar tax reversal is applauded by industry as it was ruled that the PSC did not have enough evidence to back up it’s decision and proposal for special fees on distributed energy which will not be applicable anymore.

Rooftop solar customers would have been charged an extra monthly fee of $3.79 per kilowatt (kW) of installed capacity, meaning that customer who installed a 5 kW rooftop solar system would have been billed an extra $18.95 per month.

Is Solar Actually Causing Climate Change?

According to latest studies, large solar arrays may actually have some surprising side effects, including changes in the local climate. 

It also came to light recently that the Mojave Solar Project may actually be adversely affecting the Bighorns in the Soda Mountains of California.

Figuring out how renewable energy sources will affect their local landscapes is an increasingly relevant challenge for scientists.

It is important, however, to not ignore the solar cornucopia if we are serious about moving towards a renewable energy future.

Hawaiian Solar Can Still Flourish After Net Metering

Utilities and solar advocates are still at it. Even after realizing the benefits of solar, they’ve still not reached an agreement on net metering.

Solar groups in Hawaii are suing utility commissions, and solar leaders are warning lawmakers they are so close to capping their net energy metering limits that the whole solar industry could come to a dead stop.

Even though net metering in Hawaii is over, there is still light at the end of the tunnel.

By taking advantage of smart, affordable technologies available in the marketplace, all electricity users could move “towards a more integrated grid that reduces costs and enhances reliability for both customers and the utility,” said RMI Senior Associate Mark Dyson.

So what happened in Hawaii, and how can demand flexibility help replace net metering as well as offer more benefits to everyone?

All this and more is available here.

Graph Shows US Power Grid Evolution Over 20 Years

The US energy mix is changing shape. It’s often spoken about, but how does it look?

This graph shows 5 interesting power trends, representing how electricity is generated across the states, and how it has changed over the years.

Ultimately this is about us, the choices, transitions, and opportunities we have created. Where will technology and innovation take us if we allow it?

Solar is claiming its share of the spotlight by increasing scale and dropping costs rapidly.

When it comes to energy, one thing seems quite clear: The only constant is change.

Originally posted on Synapse Energy Economics.

Kyocera Corp’s Big Solar Push