Bay Area Radio Station Goes Solar
by John Uhl - Oct 31st, 2008
The power of the sun is on the air.
Yesterday, KGO-AM 810 NewsTalk Radio in San Fransisco became the first major broadcast media outlet in California to transmit via solar power. The switch to solar will allow KGO to reduce its impact on the power grid and make KGO, with a weekly reach of 700,000 listeners, an ambassador of solar power's viability.
"As a trusted Bay Area news source, we have the opportunity and the responsibility to be a voice for important ecological issues," said Mickey Luckoff, KGO President and General Manager. "Solar power is one of many eco-friendly initiatives that deserve increased public awareness."
And since the large solar panels in front of KGO can be seen by anyone passing by, the radio station's location near the Dumbarton Bridge, which carries 81,000 cars a day across the San Fransisco Bay, will bring additional visibility to solar projects.
Construction of the panels began in early 2008, and was documented on a blog by KGO Radio Transmitter Engineer Art Lebermann. "We wanted to make use of readily available technology," he wrote in one entry, "but we also wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to be pioneers in exploring the benefits of emerging products." The decision to use new technology resulted in some delays, but the project was completed successfully and, it seems, more or less on time.
Here is Lebermann's explanation of the station's innovative solar tracking panels, which were developed in Spain and custom-designed for KGO:
This technology offers two advantages not available in today's mainstream products: its CPV (concentrated photovoltaic) panels use innovative optics to concentrate the sun's rays for maximum energy generation. In addition, the panels are mounted on dual-axis trackers that allow the panels -- like much of the plant world -- to follow the sun as it moves across the sky during the day. This means that unlike traditional fixed panels, the SolFocus panels are positioned for the best possible energy generation during all daylight hours.
Video of the station's official solar "launch," attended by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who called the project "a manifestation of the policies that we have to present in our country to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and foreign oil," can be seen on YouTube.
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really good article. I hope
really good article. I hope the radio station will hammer home the fact that it is solar powered. 700,000 listeners could become converts.
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