New Solar technology is in the pipeline as solar perovskites are moving from lab to production across the world. Compared to traditional silicon panels, these panels are peaking at more than 28 percent efficiency for turning light into power, versus the record for silicon photovoltaics of 26.7 percent. Additionally, they have the potential for greater flexibility, greater consistency, and lower cost, according to industry experts. This could be the future of solar, and it could be a dominant one.

Earlier this year Environment America and the Frontier Group released a report for 2016 highligthing the vast potential for rooftop solar on big-box stores. With the reduced costs of solar and increasing electric rates, solar energy is quickly becoming a preferred investment by residential home owners and business owners alike. This report highlight's the massive solar potential for big-box stores, and identifies how "untapped" the commercial solar market really is.

In just two months after the revolutionary circumnavigation of the world by solar-powered plane, it seems the Swiss are at it again. Raphael Domjan, an “ecoexplorer” and electrical engineer, premiered on Wednesday his solar plane capable of reaching staggering heights of 82,000 feet, or nearly halfway through the stratosphere.

The future of American solar power production looks bright-- in the second quarter of 2016 alone, 2 gigawatts worth of panels were installed. Put relatively, the solar capacity introduced between April and June of this year is roughly equal to the peak power generation of the Hoover Dam.

SolBid Founders Nate Raymond and Ian Ricci were interviewed on Building the Future Radio by host, Kevin Horek. They discussed the inner workings of SolBid and provided insight into how they got SolBid to where is at today. In case you missed it, listen to it here! #BuildingTheFuture #SolBid #Solar

Water scarcity is a pervasive issue all over the world. While there are massive amounts of water on our planet, only about 3.5% of it is fresh water and a majority of that is trapped in glaciers and ice caps. With around 7.5 billion people on this planet, “more than 650 million people lack access to clean water, and a billion do not have electricity,” which makes this an a very extensive health concern. Many researchers have been exploring recently how renewable energies could be used to combat this issue of water scarcity.

Discussions surrounding the modernization of energy are often concentrated on updating extensive networks of fossil fuel-reliant power plants in developed countries. But what about the myriad populations around the world who don't yet have electric power of any sort?

The Walt Disney Company is not new to leveraging solar in their projects with some design sense. Back in 1982, Disney built an attraction at EPCOT called the Universe of Energy; later renamed and updated to Ellen's Energy Adventure. The entire pavilion incorporated 80,000 PV solar cells.

According to a new report by GTM Research, the U.S. Commercial solar market is set to grow by 30% in 2016. The report also highlights that the U.S. commercial market will reach 3.0 gigawatts of solar power by 2020, amounting to a market size of roughly $3.8 billion.

Bill Gates is one of many who sees clean energy solutions as a pathway to the longevity of both the human race and our planet. A solution set that can both spur economic growth and environmental preservation.