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Spinoff story
A New Look for Greenbelt
A real-world story of NASA technology finding a life beyond the mission.
About this technology
Overview
Greenbelt Homes' management asked its neighbor, Goddard Space Flight Center, for assistance in setting up a solar energy project. To study effectiveness, Goddard instrumented the building to determine oil consumption, water usage and temperatures. Goddard engineers recorded information for two winter-summer cycles and are now analyzing the data. Preliminary estimates indicate solar collectors save between 40 and 50 percent of oil needed to meet home heating and hot water needs.