For something we use every day, energy is a pretty mysterious concept, one ripe for students’ imaginations.  That’s why NOVA is excited to announce the launch of the Energy Lab — the second Lab in a growing collection of research resources on the NOVA Labs site.  In this Lockheed Martin-funded site, teens and students can design renewable energy systems for cities across the U.S. and compete with lab participants nationally, with the best designs meeting energy demands while saving on money and carbon emissions.

This Lab investigates what energy is, how it can be converted into useful forms, and why some sources are running low.  More specifically, it encourages students to consider:

Using Energy:  What is energy and how can we produce and use it more efficiently?

Finding alternatives:  What alternatives do we have to limited resources like fossil fuels?

Storing and Moving energy:  What are the challenges of moving electricity where it needs to be, when it needs to be there?

An Educator guide provides teachers with a research challenge for students, a video library, and opportunities for students to interact with scientists and engineers.