Explainers

Learn how electricity gets from power plants to your house. An overview of the electricity grid, including its primary components, history, and future opportunities.

The Production Tax Credit (PTC) is a federal incentive that provides financial support for the first ten years of a renewable energy facility's operation.

From television and telephones to safety and science, we use satellites every minute of every day.

Communities need science to help them weigh risks and benefits of unconventional oil and gas extraction.

Learn how global warming is affecting the timing and availability of water resources in the western US.

Learn how heat from the Earth is converted into electricity in this comprehensive overview, including a discussion of the geothermal resource, its environmental and societal impacts, and its potential for future expansion.

Learn how moving water is converted into electricity in this comprehensive overview, including a discussion of the hydropower resource, its environmental and societal impacts, and the potential for future expansion of hydroelectic energy.

Hundreds of US nuclear warheads are kept ready to launch within minutes—making us less safe, not safer.

When developed from the right sources, biofuels offer huge potential as a clean-burning alternative to oil.

Coal-fired power plants, which produce a significant share of US electricity, have significant impacts on water quantity and quality.

A summary of Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli's misguided investigation of respected climate scientist Michael Mann.

How does local food move from the fields to the table?