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Tuesday, December 02, 2008

N.M. Scientist: Solar Energy Is 'H.O.T.'

By John Fleck
Journal Staff Writer
       Cliff Ho thinks solar energy is "H.O.T." — and he wants you to know about it.
    The Albuquerque scientist, a Sandia National Laboratories solar energy researcher by day, has become a nights-and-weekends Internet video maker. Ho is a finalist in Discover Magazine's "The Future of Energy in 2 Minutes or Less" contest.
    "I thought it would be a good way to promote solar," said Ho, who in addition to studying and promoting solar energy is in the midst of having solar electric panels installed on the roof of his Albuquerque home.
    With a catchy tune playing in the background (courtesy of a band Ho, his brother and two friends had back in the 1980s), Ho's video touts the suitability of the sun to meet our three main societal energy needs:
    H — Heating.
    O — On-site electricity production.
    T — Transportation.
    Heating and electricity production can be done with solar collectors installed on the roof of your home, Ho said. Transportation can be done by plugging solar-generated electricity into next-generation cars that operate on a combination of batteries and traditional gasoline.
    Ho's scientific career has spanned much of the energy arena, from nuclear waste and water-energy issues to his current stint on Sandia's solar energy research team, where he works on computer simulations of energy outputs from solar plants.
    Ho said he has never made a serious video before.
    His video was one of four finalists picked by Discover. The winner, to be chosen by a judge from the Natural Resources Defense Council, will be named Dec. 17. The winning entrant gets a full home energy audit and some $2,000 worth of energy-saving gadgets.
    Web users can also vote for their own favorite.