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Hot on the heels of the release of the NRDC's renewable energy map, we have another piece of first-rate energy geek eye candy: NPR: Power Hungry: Visualizing The U.S. Electric Grid. This map will let you check different sources (with separate maps for wind and solar, in addition to traditional sources), and toggle transmission lines and other features on and off. My only gripe is that you can't zoom the maps, which in some cases makes it a challenge to click on the circle for a particular power plant.

The UK's seas could provide enough extra wind energy to power the equivalent of 19m homes, according to an assessment by the government. The government's strategic environmental assessment (Sea) confirmed projections that an extra 25GW of electricity generation capacity could be accommodated in UK waters. This would be in addition to the 8GW of wind power already built or planned offshore, bringing the potential total electricity capacity of offshore wind to 33GW - enough to power every household in the UK.

Editor's Note: Hear Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. executive Mark Case talk more about the utility's smart grid program in BBJcast, the Baltimore Business Journal's weekly podcast devoted to the top business news in the region. Available on iTunes, search "BBJcast." Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. is seeking as much as $200 million in federal stimulus money to pay for nearly half of a "smart grid" program that will help customers reduce energy consumption during times of peak demand.

OBAMA HAS PROMISED TO PUT COAL COMPANIES OUT OF BUSINESS

It is a well known fact that the electricity is very important for the proper functioning of the various things, without which nothing can be possible.

The solar panels are nowadays used for the residential purpose as the electricity bills are emerging a lot to bring the affordable power for the remote areas where there is no electricity...

Geothermal [in Greek: "geo" = earth/"therme" = heat] energy is the most logical choice for establishing "green" "base-load" power.

The Guardian has an article on plans to expand micro-hydro generation in Britain - Canals and rivers to lead micro-hydropower revolution Britain's canals and rivers have already been heralded as a low-carbon way to tranport Tesco groceries, a test-bed for hydrogen boats and a opportunity to build more wind turbines. Now they're being billed as a chance for micro hydropower to flourish under new plans unveiled today by British Waterways, which maintains 2,200 miles of the country's canals and rivers. In partnership with The Small Hydro Company, British Waterways said it intended to build 25 small-scale hydro-electric schemes with a capacity of 40MW, enough to power 40,000 homes. While far smaller in capacity than offshore wind farms switched on in 2008, the hydro initiative hopes to raise £120m in private capital over the next three years, create 150 construction jobs and reduce CO2 emissions by 110,000 tonnes annually. Underwater turbines will be installed next to existing weirs and will not affect the navigation of canals and rivers. Larger waterways such as the Trent and Severn rivers will be used for the first hydro power projects, with many of the installations likely to be located in the East Midlands and Yorkshire. It is hoped the first of the 25 hydro installations will be generating renewable electricity by 2010.

An environmentalist-sponsored report claims that by 2050, the United States could sever ties with coal and nuclear power, draw nearly all its electricity from renewable sources and cut its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80% -- all with existing technology and with a net gain of 14 million jobs to the domestic economy. The report, commissioned by Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council and conducted by Germany's equivalent of NASA, was released this morning at a press briefing in Washington. It is heavy on charts and supporting data and transparent on some key assumptions. And its sponsors call its findings "conservative." At its core, the report envisions a steep drop in the United States' energy use, both in absolute terms and compared with International Energy Agency predictions -- driven by strict efficiency standards. It also projects dramatic changes in the nation's electricity mix, with wind and solar power mushrooming to replace coal, oil and nuclear sources that would gradually go offline.

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As traditional energy sources become increasingly rare and expensive, many homeowners are turning to the skies and learning how to harness energy from the sun. Solar cell technology has been around since the 1950s, but technology has improved considerably and at current levels of efficiency it is worth taking the time and effort to consider a Solar Power Home Now Solar cells are also called photovoltaics, or PV, by the boffins. In basic terms, they are made of semi conducing materials, which, when exposed to the sun go through a distinct process. The solar energy separates the electrons from the atoms within the material and the movement of the electrons creates power, or electricity. Thus light (photons) is converted into electricity (voltage).

Cleantechnica reports that the UK is experimenting with smart fridges (fridges that adjust their power consumption dynamically based on grid load) - UK Giving Away "Intelligent Fridges". Live in the UK? You may be the lucky recipient of a free "intelligent" refrigerator. 3,000 fridges that adapt power usage based on the demands of the electrical grid will be given away by the government next year. According to a report from the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change, the dynamic demand fridges could potentially save 2 million tons of carbon each year and £222m. In addition to saving energy, the dynamic demand fridges will also help ease the transition to intermittently produced renewable energy by reducing the minimum amount of power necessary to keep the electrical grid stable- in other words, the fridges limit the base amount of fossil fuels used in energy creation.

Grist has a post on a plan by "RePower America" to shift to 100% renewable electricity by 2018 - 100 percent renewables in 10 years. Following up on Wednesday's "Now what?" ads, the Alliance for Climate Protection has launched a new website, RepowerAmerica.org, calling for 100 percent of U.S. electricity to be drawn from renewable sources within the next 10 years. The group also has a new television ad by the same name, which will run through Saturday on CNN, Fox News, Headline News, and MSNBC ... and another ad will run all next week, starting Sunday on the morning news shows.

China will put 60,000 new-energy vehicles-including fuel-cell vehicles, hybrid-electric vehicles, and battery-electric vehicles-into trials in 11 cities over the next few years to support the development of a fuel-efficient, alternative-energy auto industry, according to a report in sina.com.

Reporting from Reno -- Not far from the blinking casinos of this gambler's paradise lies what could be called the Biggest Little Power Plant in the World. Tucked into a few dusty acres across from a shopping mall, it uses steam heat from deep within the Earth's crust to generate electricity. Known as geothermal, the energy is clean, reliable and so abundant that this facility produces more than enough electricity to power every home in Reno, population 221,000.

Lonnie Johnson has some impressive hard science credentials. He's worked for the Strategic Air Command and for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, outfitting missions to Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. He holds about 100 patents, many of them in that arcane spot where chemistry, electricity and physics cross into the marketplace. And his latest invention appears to do the impossible: generating electricity with no fuel and no moving parts. But he's still known as Mr. Squirt Gun. Even among the geniuses who gathered to honor him and his new thermo-electrochemical converter at a "Breakthrough Awards" banquet in Manhattan this month, the Atlanta scientist's new invention was ignored when his most famous device was revealed.

A $1 billion network of electric car recharging stations will dot San Francisco Bay area highways under a plan unveiled Thursday that aims to greatly expand the number of electric vehicles on the road. Palo Alto-based Better Place along with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed announced the deal, which sets out to install charging stations in homes, businesses, parking lots and government buildings by 2012.

Earlier this week, Portugal debuted the world's first commercial wave energy farm. Wave energy at the Agucadoura station is converted into electricity with the use of three red "sea-snakes", or cylindrical wave energy converters, that are attached to the seabed off Portugal's northern coast. Energy captured by the sea-snakes is carried to an undersea cable station, where it is then fed into the electrical grid.

ntel on Thursday showed off a wireless electric power system that analysts say could revolutionize modern life by freeing devices from transformers and wall outlets. Intel chief technology officer Justin Rattner demonstrated a Wireless Energy Resonant Link as he spoke at the California firm's annual developers forum in San Francisco.

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts (Reuters) - A U.S. scientist has developed a new way of powering fuel cells that could make it practical for home owners to store solar energy and produce electricity to run lights and appliances at night. A new catalyst produces the oxygen and hydrogen that fuel cells use to generate electricity, while using far less energy than current methods.