Mark your calendars for the 2013 Solar Decathlon

WaterShed / University of Maryland - 2011 Architecture Winner

U.S. Department of Energy has announced the date and location of the 2013 Solar Decathlon. Appearing for the first time outside of Washington D.C., the highly anticipated competition will take place in 2013 from October 3rd through the 13th at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine, California. Launched in 2002, the biennial event will challenge twenty collegiate teams to design, build and operate a solar-powered house that is cost-effective, energy-efficient and attractive. Participants are judged by their ability to blend affordability, consumer appeal and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency.

Continue reading after the break for more information and the complete list of the 2013 teams.

“We look forward to the arrival of the Energy Department’s Solar Decathlon to the Great Park in October 2013,” said Mike Ellzey, Chief Executive Officer, Orange County Great Park Board Corporation. “This event will showcase the Park’s commitment to sustainability, education and public engagement and will bring economic benefits to the Southern California region.”

The 20 student teams selected to participate in Solar Decathlon 2013 include nine returning teams, 11 new teams, and four international teams. Conceptual designs submitted by these teams include a range of innovative building technologies such as smart home controls, building-integrated photovoltaics, energy-efficient building-envelope assemblies, and heat-recovery systems.

Orange County Great Park © Quan Ha

Solar Decathlon 2013 Teams

  • Arizona State University and The University of New Mexico (Tempe, Arizona, and Albuquerque, New Mexico)
  • Czech Technical University (Prague, Czech Republic)
  • Hampton University and Old Dominion University (Hampton and Norfolk, Virginia)
  • Middlebury College (Middlebury, Vermont)
  • Missouri University of Science and Technology (Rolla, Missouri)
  • Norwich University (Northfield, Vermont)
  • Queens University, Carleton University, and Algonquin College (Kingston and Ottawa, Ontario, Canada)
  • Santa Clara University (Santa Clara, California)
  • Southern California Institute of Architecture and California Institute of Technology (Los Angeles, California)
  • Stanford University (Palo Alto, California)
  • Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, New Jersey)
  • The Catholic University of America, George Washington University, and American University (Washington, DC)
  • The University of North Carolina at Charlotte (Charlotte, North Carolina)
  • The University of Texas at El Paso and El Paso Community College (El Paso, Texas)
  • University of Calgary (Calgary, Alberta, Canada)
  • University of Louisville, Ball State University and University of Kentucky(Louisville, Kentucky; Muncie, Indiana; and Lexington, Kentucky)
  • University of Nevada Las Vegas (Las Vegas, Nevada)
  • University of Southern California (Los Angeles, California)
  • Vienna University of Technology (Vienna, Austria)
  • West Virginia University (Morgantown, West Virginia)

Venue: Orange County Great Park Location: Irvine, California Date(s): October 3 – 13, 2013 Public hours: 11AM to 7PM Daily Cost: Free

Check out last years winners, here on ArchDaily:

Reference: U.S. Department of Energy, Orange County Great Park

Photo of the Orange County Great Park by Flickr user Quan Ha, licensed through Creative Commons.

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Cite: Karissa Rosenfield. "Mark your calendars for the 2013 Solar Decathlon" 16 Mar 2012. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/217633/mark-your-calendars-for-the-2013-solar-decathlon> ISSN 0719-8884

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