If you ever watched the show MASH in the '70's, or even still watch the reruns, you get a pretty clear idea that there's a lot of power needed to run a mobile medical hospital. Of course, as technology has advanced, so has the power needs of mobile hospitals. That's why I'm pleased to see that Florida International University is working with the military to build a mobile hospital that is totally reliant on solar power.

Imagine a team of doctors, soldiers or humanitarians airlifted into a remote jungle many miles from the nearest road or power grid. Within 24 hours, a fully functioning, fully powered medical clinic rises from the jungle floor.

Researchers from Florida International University are working with U.S. military planners to develop a makeshift mobile hospital that runs completely on solar power, can purify or desalinate up to 400 gallons of water per day and can treat dozens of people who consider electricity a luxury.

The project began a test run recently in the Honduran jungle.

If successful, the self-sustaining tentlike structure could become a model for the U.S. military and American emergency response teams to set up field operations in remote locations.

Even better, these hospitals won't have to worry about getting truckloads of fuel to power diesel generators into remote regions of the world. So they'll be saving lives and helping save the planet at the same time.

Air Care LLC's 1.5-Ton, 18,000 BTU Solar Powered Air Conditioner

Summertime cooling is one of the biggest drains on energy in the U.S. and every year power companies ask their customers to turn the thermostat up a few degrees and conserve electricity wherever possible. But what if you could take the reason we turn our air conditioners on in the first place, the sun, and use it to cool your home?

Well, perhaps now you can do just that. AirCare, LLC. is going to be demonstrating a new solar-powered air conditioner in Arizona this spring in preparation for making it available to the general public. It runs on 24 volts of DC power, rather than the standard 110 AC power that comes out of your wall, but is still powerful enough to cool a fairly large home even though it uses 75% less energy than conventional air conditioners.

The nicest part is that you can install this unit even if you don't live in a particularly sunny area. While it's primarily powered by solar, you can also use wind or hydro power to run it. If all else fails, it will charge its batteries from standard wall power as well until the renewable resource is available again.Even better, you can connect lights, ceiling fans, and other devices (laptops and cell phones) to the battery system to reduce your reliance on grid power even more.

If you're looking for a new air conditioner this summer, this one might be your best alternative.

Ecogeek has another really good article up, this time about solar water heaters.

Solar water heaters are low tech. Basically, they're black pipes on
panels. There's no nanotechnology, no monosilicon crystals, and no DC
to AC conversion. Just run a pipe to your roof, through the panel, and
then back into your house. In many parts of the US, solar water heaters
can provide more than 90% of a household's water. And in all but the
cloudiest climates, they can provide more than 30%.

[...]

So why haven't we done it? A few reasons. First, installation can
cost more than $5,000 dollars, especially in older houses. Second, new
home buyers apparently don't like to see solar water heaters disrupting
their "roof lines." But there's good news on both these fronts.

First, banks are looking for new kinds of loans in America. A loan
that would, in effect, pay for itself and be more or less default-free
could be very enticing. A ten-year loan on a solar water heater would,
in effect, be free for the home owner and risk-free for the bank.

I decided to see what it would cost me to install a solar water heater in my home if I went to the bank and asked them for a loan. Now, assuming the interest rate is at 8% and it cost $6,000 to get everything installed, here's what the monthly payments would look like:

• 3 years = $156.68
• 5 years = $101.38
• 7 years = $77.93
• 10 years = $60.66

All in all, that's not too bad. A five year loan with these numbers would run you at a little over $1200 per year. Now factor in the savings on your heating bill, and that number comes down even further. The added bonus, as Ecogeek pointed out, is that it adds resale value to your home, which right now is especially important.