Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
SunPower to provide solar energy to power Santiago subway
SunPower Corp. agreed to provide electricity from a 100-megawatt solar farm to help power the subway system in Chile’s largest city. Power from the El Pelicano Solar Project will provide as much as 60 percent of Metro of Santiago’s total energy needs, San Jose, California-based SunPower Read More...
Solar plane lands in Ohio on latest leg of round-the-world flight
An experimental airplane powered solely by energy from the sun landed in Ohio on Saturday night on the latest leg of its historic bid by pilots and developers to fly around the globe without a drop of fuel. The single-seat Solar Impulse 2 aircraft arrived in Dayton shortly before 10 p.m. local Read More...
Nissan home energy-storage battery: another front against Tesla?
The Nissan Leaf electric car doesn't compete directly with any of the luxury models from Tesla Motors, but Nissan is now targeting Tesla in a different arena. The Japanese carmaker will offer standalone battery packs for home energy storage. Available for pre-order in September, the xStorage line Read More...
Renewable energy storage: A train filled with rocks on a hill
The storage of renewable energy is a challenge as the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow. The cutting-edge technology solution comes from ever more clever batteries. But what about a 19th century solution for a 21st century problem, with help from the abundant natural Read More...
15 inspiring examples of renewable energy success
We report every day on the renewable energy revolution that is gaining more and more speed. Here’s a good selection of the successes put together by BuzzFeed. Just one note: We’d rather see that backpack used in a different Read More...
People power: Tasmanian residents to store solar energy and sell it back to grid
There are more than 1.5m households in Australia with rooftop solar. And in a few months time, 40 Tasmanian homeswill be acting as mini power stations – not just producing energy for their own consumption and to export back into the grid, but actively trading and profiting from the power they Read More...
Shell prepares for the world after oil with new clean energy division
Oil companies face the tremendous challenge that their core business is phasing out. And, if history is any guide, the leaders of one industrial revolution—fossil fuels—are seldom the leaders of the next industrial revolution—renewable energy. However, every step towards more clean, renewable Read More...
Using solar power to turn saltwater into drinkable water
Fresh drinking water is increasingly precious. That’s why worldwide hundreds of desalination plants are planned or under way. However, most of them are powered by fossil fuels. At the giant Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park under construction near Dubai, a desalination facility goes Read More...
Key climate solutions advance considerably faster than anyone expected
This is music to the ears of readers of The Optimist Daily. An analysis by a long-time renewable energy expert argues with detailed data that key climate solutions have been advancing considerably faster than anyone expected just a few years ago. Just last week, as we reported, a Saudi-backed Read More...
This electric jet can take off vertically but drives like a car
With zero emissions and zero runway, the Lilium Jet will be the world’s first entirely electric jet capable of a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL). Able to fly up to an altitude of about 9,800 feet, the two-person airplane will have a cruising speed of 180 mph, a maximum speed of about 250 Read More...