New Ways to Catch Rays
Mirrored dish
Resembling large satellite dishes,
these giant mirrored dishes collect solar radiation and use it to generate
electricity in a novel way. Each dish bears its own Stirling engine, which
works by using heat to expand a hot gas that drives pistons to produce electricity.
Developed by Stirling Energy Systems, early versions are in use at Sandia
National Laboratories in New Mexico.