In Pictures: PV + EV in 2011
SolarChargedDriving.com
2011 was an exciting year for solar-charged driving! Check out the pics>>
ZERO EMISSIONS RACE
The first-ever Zero Emissions Race among EVs powered by renewable energy finished in Switzerland early in 2011.
VOLT & LEAF RUN ON SUN
California resident George Parrott became among the first in the world to fuel both a Chevy Volt and a Nissan LEAF using home solar electricity.
AUTOMAKERS PLUG INTO SOLAR
Ford launched a solar energy system to help generate electricity at its Michigan Assembly Plant in March.
SOLAR-POWERED PLANE FLIES HIGH
A 100-percent solar-powered plane, the Solar Impulse, made several long-distance and historic flights in Europe this year.
UK GOES EV + PV
Alan Weeks became among the first in the UK to plug a Nissan LEAF into home solar.
SOLAR COMPANY PITCHES SOLAR-CHARGED DRIVING
Stellar Solar, a California solar installer, bought a Nissan LEAF and used it to advertise the EV + PV synergy to prospective customers.
MITSUBISHI TAPS SOLAR FUEL
Mitsubishi installed a solar-charged EV charging canopy at its North America headquarters.
iMIEVs, LEAFs SHARE SOLAR GAS STATION
Shortly after opening the solar EV charging station at its California-based N. American headquarters to the public, Mitsubishi saw several Nissan LEAF drivers share sun power with its own iMiEVs.
GM TAKES SOLAR CANOPY LEAD
GM installed several solar EV charging canopies in 2011 and plans to install many, many more in 2012.
SUNPOWER, FORD TEAM UP
Ford announced it was partnering with SunPower to help promote solar-charged driving.
SOLAR-CHARGED IN AUSTIN, TEXAS
Chevrolet, Best Buy, and SunEdison are among the companies who’ve collaborated to build a smart grid community in Austin that includes solar-powered homes and solar-charged EVs.
SOLAR BOAT SAILS AROUND THE WORLD
A giant solar-powered boat, PlanetSolar, embarked upon an around-the-world journey and, as of Dec. 31, 2011, was only a couple of weeks away from completing the historic trip.
FREE NISSAN LEAF
This lucky UK couple won a Nissan LEAF from the solar company that installed the solar gas station you see on their home’s roof.
SWISS SOLAR GAS STATION
Switzerland saw another solar gas station go up this year, one of several hundred that have been installed in Europe so far.
GERMANY A SOLAR + EV LEADER
Yet another solar EV charging station is inaugurated in Germany here, this one in the Hanover area.
NISSAN, SUNPOWER PROMOTE EV + PV
After forging a partnership with Ford, SunPower created another with Nissan. A YouTube video promoted the parrtnership — and showed everyone how PV + EV works.
ELECTRIC CAR GETS ITS REVENGE
‘Revenge of the Electric Car’, Director Chris Paine’s follow-up to ‘Who Killed the Electric Car’, was released in late 2011.
NFL GOES SOLAR, TAPS EV + PV
The Washington Redskins installed a 8,000 panel solar canopy at FedEx Field in Sept. 2011 — and included multiple EV charging stations to boot.
BRITISH GAS PITCHES EV + PV
British Gas began promoting solar-charged driving for its customers — and plugged in itself with some solar-charged, and colorfully wrapped, LEAFs.
EVERYONE TALKING ABOUT PLUG-INS
EVs came into their own with the increasing availability of plug-ins such as the Nissan LEAF and Chevy Volt and with the help of events such as the first-ever National Plug-In Day in the U.S.
Original Article on SolarChargedDriving.com
Christof Demont-Heinrich is founder, creator andeditor of SolarChargedDriving.Com, which he launched in September 2009.SolarChargedDriving.Com is a unique site devoted to covering andpromoting the synergy between solar energy and EVs (electric vehicles)and PHEVs (plug in hybrid electric vehicles). In addition to offeringreaders a mix of how-to information, news feature and newswire coverage, and news analysis, SolarChargedDriving.Com is an interactive community: Readers can create their own blogs, post pictures and video, createtheir own photo and video galleries, and meet other solar-chargeddrivers online. A journalism professor at the University of Denver (DU), Demont-Heinrich is a lifelong environmentalist who loves to bird, hike, camp, and bike. Articles l Homepage