Is the hornet our key to renewable energy? Physicist discovers that hornet's outer shell can harvest solar power
Wednesday, January 5, 2011 - 11:32
in Physics & Chemistry
The brown and yellow parts of the Oriental hornet's body are able to harvest solar energy, and if that function can be mimicked, a novel way of achieving high-efficiency solar energy collection might be just around the corner, says a physicist who has demonstrated that the brown and yellow stripes on the insect's abdomen can absorb the sun's radiation, and the yellow pigment transforms that radiation into electric power.