The 20 teams from colleges and universities across the United States and from around the world will now begin a two-year process to build solar-powered, highly energy-efficient homes that combine affordability, consumer appeal and design excellence.
Throughout the two-year process, the teams will design, construct, and test their homes before reassembling them at the Solar Decathlon 2013 competition site.
As part of the Solar Decathlon, teams compete in ten different categories—ranging from best architecture and engineering to energy production for heating and cooling—while gaining invaluable real-world experience in a growing global industry.
"As President Obama made clear in the State of the Union address this week, we need to ensure that the next generation of America's architects, engineers and entrepreneurs have the hands-on experience and training they need to lead our nation's clean energy future," said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. "The Solar Decathlon will unleash the ingenuity, creativity, and drive from these talented students to demonstrate new ideas for how families and businesses can reduce energy use and save money with clean energy products and efficient building design."
In fall 2013, the student teams will showcase their solar-powered houses at the Orange County Great Park, highlighting renewable energy systems and energy-efficient technologies, products and appliances that are already available to homeowners. The selected teams and their proposed projects represent a diverse range of design approaches, building technologies, target markets, geographic locations, climates, and regions, including urban, suburban, and rural settings.
Since 2002, the National Mall in Washington, DC, has been the venue for five successful Solar Decathlons.
For 2013, Solar Decathlon organizers decided to extend the competition's reach beyond Washington and showcase energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies to a new group of visitors and sponsors.
The selected teams are:
For additional information:
