Arizona Public Service (APS), the state’s largest utility is trying to gut its support of net-metering, and recently they got a boost from two swift-boat style attack ads, which may or may not be tied to the company itself. But the whole thing is being watched by the solar and utility industry to see how it plays out and whether or not the ads and APS are successful in the latest attack on net metering. 

Normally when people think about renewable energy and who supports it, most think it’s primarily championed by liberals and Democrats. But a growing number of conservatives and Republicans, even Tea Party members are supporting solar. In fact, two of the nation’s largest solar states have Republican Governors. 

Volvo’s new diesel hybrid EV car may have a nondescript name (V60)—then again none of its models carry a name like Corvette or Mustang—but the hybrid, which is being introduced in Italy in September already has the world’s sexiest solar charger design. 

Paramount Equity’s subsidiary Paramount Solar has partnered with U.S. Bank to create a new fund to support solar leases with Clean Power Finance. The new fund, the Paramount Energy Fund, will allow homeowners to finance solar projects through Paramount Solar. Paramount Solar in turn will use Clean Power Finance’s CPF Market, its software, underwriting and risk management services. 

In a 4-to-1 vote last week Georgia’s Public Services Commission (PSC) decided it’s time for the Peach State to up its solar game. The PCS decided that Georgia Power, the state’s largest electric utility, needs to add in 525 megawatts of solar generation—and to start doing it at a rapid pace, with all new 525 megawatts online by 2016. 

Normally when we think of the sun, we think about light and maybe about heat. The sun is good for both these things. Nowadays when we think about the sun we also think about solar power and how we can use the sun’s extra light to create electricity—usually through photovoltaics, but also through solar thermal power. But there are those who have come up with some truly unique applications for using the sun’s power.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced this week that the state will support the deployment of 64 megawatts (MWs) of solar under the NY-Sun Initiative’s NY-Sun Competitive PV Program, which supports systems larger than 50 kilowatts. The state will support the 79 projects with $54 million.

As the legendary World Solar Challenge—a 3,000 kilometer (1,864 mile) race in October across Australia’s outback—comes closer, teams are starting to unveil their cars. While there’s no shortage of slick, aerodynamic three-wheelers with cockpits as snug as nutshells, this year’s race will feature 47 teams from 26 countries and two new classes—the Cruiser Class and the Adventure Class.

NPD Solarbuzz is reporting that the U.S. now has more than 10 gigawatts of photovoltaic (PV) power installed. Moreover, it joins just three other countries that have surpassed that mark: Germany—the overall leader—along with Italy and the world’s most populous nation, China.

It was something of a Hollywood ending—a successful flight despite difficulties that could have ended Solar Impulse’s historic journey across the U.S. early. Fabric covering the lumbering solar-powered plane’s left wing tore, revealing an eight-foot section of the wing’s inner workings and potentially crippling the last leg of the journey from California to New York City. The historic journey, which included stops at multiple locations throughout the U.S. to showcase the PV-powered aircraft, marks the first time a manned plane powered purely by the sun has crossed the U.S.