After four days of rain and cloudy weather, the sun finally came out over the solar village on Sunday afternoon. Canada’s team has already shown an estimated 7000 people through the Cenovus TRTL solar home – more than any other team so far in the U.S. Department of Energy’s 2011 Solar Decathlon. Until October 2, the TRTL -- along with 18 other student-designed solar homes – will be open to the public on West Potomac Park in Washington, DC. The houses are undergoing rigorous testing while the teams host a series of special events to demonstrate the functionality of their homes.
As part of the competition, each team is required to host two dinner parties and a movie night for their neighbours in the solar village. On Monday night, the team will host two VIP guests as well as two decathletes from each of the three guest teams to a feast of Aboriginal cuisine, including bison roast with wild rice, bannock, and berries. Tuesday night, the team will host a movie night where a neighbouring team will assign points based on the usability of the Cenovus TRTL’s home theatre system. On Wednesday, the team will prepare and serve a Canadian contemporary dinner for yet another group of guests.
Click here for the full story by Julie Phillips in U Today