Posted by tourdemars to Technology at November 15, 2004 03:53 PM

Applying the most efficient solar technology available, researchers are building a new power plant that utilizes the heat from sunlight to generate electric power. The solar dish, as it’s known, is a joint project between Stirling Energy Systems, Inc. (SES) and the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Sandia National Laboratories. Based in New Mexico, the prototype contains 82 mirrors that focus the Sun’s rays, transmitting the heat energy to an engine filled with hydrogen. As the gas expands and contracts from heating and cooling, this motion drives pistons which power a generator that creates electricity.