Explainers

Learn how utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) power plants provide carbon-free electricity.

Solar photovoltaic (PV) panels are based on a high-tech but remarkably simple technology that converts sunlight directly to electricity.

Nuclear power in the United States has consistently cost far more than expected, with taxpayers and ratepayers forced to pick up the tab.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles combine a gasoline or diesel engine with an electric motor and a large rechargeable battery.

Biomass (plant material and animal waste) is the oldest source of renewable energy, used since our ancestors learned the secret of fire.

Resource center for effective implementation of California's Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, the first-ever statewide requirement for groundwater management.

A hugely valuable crop with many uses, from animal feed to biofuels, soybeans also have an unfortunate by-product: tropical deforestation.

How does the tool work and what assumptions are made?

Solar energy—power from the sun—is a vast, inexhaustible, and clean resource

Oil shale is a dirty and expensive source of unconventional oil.

Fact: The NBCC study relies on misleading claims cut-and-pasted from several previously debunked reports.

Over a quarter of the oil consumed in the United States is used in our homes, businesses, and industries.

A better, smarter way to live.

Planes, trains, and ships all use huge amounts of oil. We can do better.

An in-depth analysis of eight leading fossil fuel companies finds that none of them has made a clean break from disinformation on climate science and policy.

UCS serves a nuclear safety watchdog. Here are our recommendations for safer, more secure nuclear power.

Renewable energy can be increased significantly without affecting the reliability of the electricity grid. Studies by the experts who plan and operate the electricity grid overwhelmingly confirm it.

This comprehensive overview explains the basics of unconventional sources of natural gas, including shale gas, tight gas sandstone, coalbed methane, methane hydrates, and biogenic gas.

Natural gas is not an effective long-term solution to global warming but it does offer some important advantages in the near- to medium-term.

This comprehensive overview explains how and why natural gas is flared and processed for use, and the methods and risks associated with transporting natural gas in the U.S. and around the world.

This comprehensive overview explains the basics of how natural gas is formed and where it can be found in the United States and around the world.

This comprehensive overview details the many uses of natural gas, including electricity generation, heating, and industrial uses.

Oil is changing—and its impacts are becoming more severe.

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