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.