Rower crossing Atlantic utilized sun to power amenities
Rick Way - March 23rd, 2010
The youngest person ever to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean recently completed her two-month-long journey after arriving in Guyana. Katie Spotz,22, relied on the power of the sun to make her time on the open water more comfortable.
Spotz rowed for as many as 10 hours a day with breaks for naps, navigation and boat maintenance. At night, she would drift aboard the specially designed ocean row boat, which had equipment including solar panels for power, a satellite phone and a laptop computer.Read story here.
She also had solar panels on the boat, which powered a nifty contraption that takes the salt out of ocean water so she can drink it. The solar panels also powered her iPod, on which she listened to audio books.
Read story here.
DC energy created by the PV panels runs into the inverter and creats an alternating current (AC). Then AC current is metered prior to heading back into the grid.
This chart shows Philadelphia averages 1600 kW-yr.
