Stories by Melissa C. Lott

The U.S. surpassed the European Union in renewable electricity capacity growth for the first time, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency

Electric cars could save the U.S. billions of dollars, according to a new report by the American Lung Association in California.

Eleven states now use wind to meet more than 10 percent of their electricity needs. Two more—Texas and New Mexico—are on track to exceed this benchmark in 2016

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Energy Released “6 Charts that Will Make You Optimistic About America’s Clean Energy Future” that track cost declines and rising use of some key technologies.

According to a new report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, solar costs continued to drop in 2016.

This month, San Francisco-based solar software company kWh Analytics announced that it had raised $5 million in Series A venture capital to support the scaling of the company’s solar data platform as well as its new “PowerLock” (an A-rated insurance-backed production guarantee).

The City of Lyon in eastern France has brought a driverless, electric shuttle service to its streets

A new study from the University of Illinois helps us to understand which appliances will make the most difference in water and energy use in the home

This summer, the District of Columbia increased and extended its renewable portfolio standard target to 50% by 2032 and doubles the role of solar.

MIT engineers have invented a bubble-wrapped, sponge-like device that uses sunlight to boil water, even on relatively cool, overcast days.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration is now providing hourly electricity operating data online in near–real time

Researchers have developed a new variation of lithium–oxygen battery chemistry that could overcome previous shortcomings for this promising storage technology

In his TED2016 talk, Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick talks about how we could use today’s technology to reduce congestion and pollution in our cities through carpooling.

Why “fast charge” when you can “flash charge”? In Geneva, an innovative charging system will soon allow electric buses on Line 23 to charge their batteries en route

It’s been five years—and almost 800 articles—since Plugged In joined the Scientific American blogging family

Harvard University's Douglas Dockert discusses the impacts of air pollution on human health and the environment

The expansion of the Panama Canal will reduce travel time and transportation costs for LNG tankers coming from the U.S. Gulf Coast to key markets in Asia

Air pollution is an energy problem - and a challenge around the globe. Check out this video to see air pollution trends in cities around the globe over the past decade.

A small (7%) increase in total energy sector investment through 2040 could save millions of lives each year through air pollution reductions, according to a report released on Monday by the International Energy Agency.

In 2015, coal use hit a 150-year low in the United Kingdom and led to a 4% drop in carbon emissions according to government energy statistics.

It could be more efficient to use reclaimed water instead of water from a local river for cooling power plants in the Chicago area, according to new research from the University of Illinois

In 2015 roof racks were responsible for 100 million gallons of gasoline consumption across the U.S., according to a new study

The “Heila IQ” distributed controller integrates the languages of all microgrid systems into a single platform—and won the $100,000 grand prize at this month's M.I.T. Clean Energy Prize competition

This diagram shows how energy flows in the U.S. from supply to demand