The debate continues over how a solar panel can cut costs versus why solar power is not a practical solution. The Department of Energy has disclosed information on a two year project being funded that will concentrate solely on solar energy. The intention of this study is to verify the efficiency of solar power as claimed by the solar power industries.

Working out if a solar panel can lower the cost per KW hour to about ten cents is their end goal, this it could happen very quickly if we were to believe the scientists. This sounds like it is not much of a reduction, but observe the billions a kilo watt hours spent each day in the U. S. You can see how much money and energy could be saved.

The governmental effort is focussing on concentrated solar power which will use an array of mirrors to focus daylight onto a central receiver. Now there are a lot of good things going on but the expense of building the technology for the heating of the liquid and a turbine generator isn't going so well. George Bush is a proponent of new alternative fuel technology, which reflects the current political climate in America. This is ironic, since George Bush was born during the Texas oil boom.

The funding will consist of $2 million and there will be nine separate private firms working together. The Solar Vehicle 8 of Lakewood, Colorado will be having a look at the development and advances to a system of picking up solar power. 3M, Alcoa, Brayton Energy, Hamilton Sundstrand, Infinium, Sky Feel, and Solar Millennium are some of the corporations that are contributing to this project.

With the looming economic crisis, the race to discover alternative sources of energy is accelerated. With the possibility of the continuation of the Iraq conflict and oil costs going through the roof, it will be easier to comprehend the results from these efforts when the United States has their solar power initiative fully active.

The government ultimately has to take a hard-line approach of working with alternative energy solutions and lessening the requirement for foreign oil and traditional fuels. While society generally notices the prices of gas going up at the same time the prices of solar power technology goes down, society will quickly go after this current technology to make a more green planet and better atmosphere for its people.

For the general public, the decision to wait for the new solar panel technology to become commercially available before installing it in their home is a tempting one, but this new technology may take another ten years before you see it in the DIY stores.