Energy

Elk Creek is the first methane-to-energy project at a coal mine west of the Mississippi and the largest of its kind nationwide.

Energy Innovation

Squeezing Cleaner Energy from Coal’s Waste

Coal mine methane could soon transform from problematic waste to valuable fuel

Next Year, Your Smartphone Might Actually Charge Itself Using Solar Power

"Invisible" solar cells may soon turn smartphone displays into battery-assisting solar panels

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Energy Innovation

This Gadget Charges Your Phone With Fire

A new device uses heat from any fire to produce electricity

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Energy Innovation

Las Vegas Gambles on a Future With Car Sharing for Everyone

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh is investing $350 million in an ambitious redevelopment plan that includes a new model for getting around Sin City

“Sonic Bloom,” a solar sculpture at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle

Energy Innovation

Sonic Bloom! A New Solar-Powered Sculpture

Dan Corson's latest installation in Seattle—flower sculptures that light up at night—show that solar energy is viable even in the cloudy Pacific Northwest

Interactive map courtesy of Esri. Text by Josie Garthwaite.

Energy Innovation

Interactive: Mapping the Shale Gas Boom

Where in the United States is fracking unlocking natural gas from shale rock?

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Energy Innovation

Could Panda Poop Be the Secret to More Efficient Biofuel?

Unique microbes in a panda's gut efficiently break down bamboo--mass producing these microbes could help scientists make sustainable biofuels

Michael Faraday's book binding shop. (Courtesy of the Royal Institution of Great Britain.)

Energy Innovation

The Birthplace of Michael Faraday’s Big Ideas

A peek inside the laboratory of the chemist and physicist, whose experiments helped scientists see the link between electricity and magnetism

Google's energy chief Rick Needham (left) has some lofty goals for the future of energy, including self-driving cars like the Google Car, shown here on a driver-less test drive (right).

Energy Innovation

Google's Rick Needham is Feeling Lucky About the Future of Sustainable Energy

Google's Rick Needham is Feeling Lucky About the Future of Sustainable Energy

Energy Innovation

Introducing a Special Report on Energy Innovation

Take a look at what is being done to wean the world off of fossil fuels

QBotix robots adjust solar panels for maximum sun exposure—making solar power cheaper and more efficient.

Energy Innovation

WALL-E Goes to Work for Cheaper Solar Power

A startup in California has engineered robots to squeeze more juice from solar panels, bringing new efficiencies to a costly process

The Nest Learning Thermostat takes an active role in saving energy around the house.

Energy Innovation

A Smart, Sleek, Money-Saving Thermostat

The father of the iPod talks about his next-generation thermostat

A young Maasai stands in front of a wind turbine on the Ngong Hills in Kenya.

Energy Innovation

Can Kenya Light the Way Toward a Clean-Energy Economy?

The absence of a robust fossil fuel infrastructure makes the African nation ripe for energy innovation

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Energy Innovation

People Had To Be Convinced of the Usefulness of Electricity

When electricity came around, it wasn't immediately seen as a necessity

Nuclear power produces a great deal of energy–and waste.

Energy Innovation

Is Shale the Answer to America’s Nuclear Waste Woes?

With the plans for a Yucca Mountain waste repository scrapped, scientists suggest that clay-rich rocks could permanently house spent nuclear fuel

San Francisco-based entrepreneur Antony Evans plans to insert genes from bioluminescent bacteria into a species of flora as a first step to creating glowing trees.

Cracking the Code of the Human Genome

Creating a New Kind of Night Light: Glow-in-the-Dark Trees

A group in California is starting to engineer plants that could one day replace streetlights

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Powering the 21st Century

Tour the Country’s Energy Infrastructure Through A New Interactive Map

Examining the network of power plants, transmission wires, and pipelines gives new insights into the inner workings of the electrical grid

Harnessing the swift tides of the Pentland Firth, a waterway along Scotland’s Northern coast, could generate enough electricity to meet half of the country’s needs.

Energy Innovation

Is Scotland the “Saudi Arabia” of Tidal Power?

The Pentland Firth, a seaway along Scotland's Northern coast, could generate enough electricity to meet half of the country's needs, new research finds

Fueling the trip to the exoplanet Gliese 667Cd, discovered earlier this week, would be one of humankind’s greatest challenges to date. Above is an artist’s rendering of a view from the planet.

Powering the 21st Century

Can We Power a Space Mission To An Exoplanet?

Ion engines, solar sails, antimatter rockets, nuclear fusion--several current and future technologies could someday help us fuel an interstellar journey

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Energy Innovation

Document Deep Dive: The Patent for the First Practical Solar Cell

See how three scientists at Bell Laboratories in 1954 invented the silicon solar cell that became the model for converting sunlight into electricity today

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