astronomy

Solar Decathlon Europe

Solar Decathlon Europe is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Solar Decathlon Europe rather than just read about it. In short: The Solar Decathlon Europe (SDE) is an international student-based Competition that challenges collegiate Teams to design, build and operate highly efficient and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy. The winner of the Competition is the Team able to score the most points in 10 contests.

Key takeaways

Solar Decathlon Europe belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Solar Decathlon Europe to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Solar Decathlon Europe from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Solar Decathlon Europe (SDE) is an international student-based Competition that challenges collegiate Teams to design, build and operate highly efficient and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy. The winner of the Competition is the Team able to score the most points in 10 contests. On Oct. 18, 2007, the Spanish and U.S. governments signed a memorandum of understanding in which the Spanish Ministry of Housing committed to organise and host a Solar Decathlon in Europe. The agreement was signed in Washington, D.C., next to the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid's Casa Solar during the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon 2007 Competition. The American signatory was Alexander A. Karsner, assistant secretary of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Department of the U.S. Department of Energy, with Fernando Magro Fernández, undersecretary of housing of the Ministry of Housing representing the Spanish government.

Solar Decathlon Europe 2010 Modeled after the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon, the first Solar Decathlon Europe took place in Madrid, Spain, in June 2010. Decathletes from 17 Teams spent 10 days competing in the Villa Solar near the Royal Palace of Madrid (Palacio Real). A combination of task completion, measurement, and jury scoring determined Solar Decathlon Europe's first champion: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University with Lumenhaus project. Final results:

Solar Decathlon Europe 2012

Second edition of the Solar Decathlon Europe was held from Sept. 14–30, 2012, in Madrid, Spain in the Casa de Campo. The final standings of its 18 competitors were:

Solar Decathlon Europe 2014 Solar Decathlon Europe 2014 took place in Versailles, France, June 28–July 14, 2014. Official final results:

And substitute Teams:

Croatia: University of Zagreb / Team UniZG Italy: Politecnico di Torino / Team Sunslice Denmark Spain: VIA University College / Universitat Jaume I / équipe VIA-UJI Romania: Politehnica University of Timișoara / West University of Timișoara / upTIM

Solar Decathlon Europe after 2014 and the Energy Enedeavour Foundation After the Solar Decathlon Europe in 2014, previous organisers, participants, supporters and decathletes worked to create a vehicle for the longevity of the Solar Decathlon in Europe. The culmination of this work was the creation of the Energy Endeavour Foundation (EEF) in 2016/2017 with the endorsement of the United States Department of Energy to steward the Solar Decathlon in Europe. The EEF subsequently issued a Call for Cities for the 2019 edition, which was awarded to Szentendre, Hungary in March 2017. From this point onward the Energy Endeavour Foundation has fulfilled its stewarding role to the SDE editions organisers. Drawing upon the input of the SDE Council of Experts, the EEF provides continuity from one SDE edition to the next.

Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 Solar Decathlon Europe 2019 took place in Szentendre, Hungary, July 12–July 28, 2019. Official results:

Solar Decathlon Europe 2021/2022 In July 2018 the Energy Endeavour Foundation (EEF) issued the Call for Cities for the 2021 edition of the Solar Decathlon Europe (SDE21). In early 2019, the EEF designated the city of Wuppertal, Germany, as the host city for the SDE21, led by a team from the University of Wuppertal and the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy. Due to the COVID19 health crisis the Solar Decathlon Europe 2021 was postponed, and took between June 10 and June 26, 2022. The SDE21>22 took place on the Utopiastadt Campus. Utopiastadt participated in the "Solar Decathlon goes urban" concept of the 2021 competition. The SDE21 Call for Teams was open until October 25, 2019, leading to the selection of 18 Teams from 11 countries. This edition of the SDE focuses on the requalification of urban environments, challenging the participating Teams in resolving one of three possible urban solutions: renovation and extension, closing gaps, and addition of stories. The Teams that competed in the SDE21>22 were:

France, Grenoble, Grenoble School of Architecture, Team AuRA. Spain, Valencia, Polytechnic University of Valencia, Azalea. Sweden, Gothenburg, Chalmers University of Technology, C-hive. Germany, Stuttgart, Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences, Collab. Turkey / Germany, Istanbul / Lübeck, Istanbul Technical University / Lübeck Technical University of Applied Sciences, Deeply High. Romania, Bucharest, Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urban Planning, EFdeN. Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Technical University in Prague, FIRSTlife. Taiwan, Taipei, National Chiao Tung University, House for all. Germany, Rosenheim, Rosenheim Technical University of Applied Sciences, Level Up. Germany, Aachen, FH Aachen, Local+. Hungary, Pécs, University of Pécs, Lungs of the City. Germany, Düsseldorf, Hochschule Düsseldorf, Mi-Mo. Germany, Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, RoofKit. Netherlands, Delft, Delft University of Technology, SUM. Netherlands, Eindhoven, Eindhoven University of Technology, Virtu/e. Germany, Biberach, Biberach University of Applied Science, X4s. Two Teams from Bangkok, Thailand, SAB from Bangkok University and Ur-Baan from King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi were unable to participate onsite due to high transportation costs.

Final ranking 1. Platz: Team RoofKIT, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology 2. Platz: Team VIRTUe, Eindhoven University of Technology 3. Platz (draw): Team SUM, Delft University of Technology und Team AuRA, Grenoble National School of Architecture

Solar Decathlon Europe 2023 The Call for Cities for the Solar Decathlon Europe 2023 (available here: sde23_ Call for Cities and… webinar! – SDE) was launched on July 14, 2020, by the Energy Endeavour Foundation. On April 7, 2021, the Capital City of Romania, Bucharest was designed as Host City for the SDE23. In January 2022, through a joint decision between The Energy Endeavour Foundation (governing body of the Solar Decathlon Europe) and the Solar Decathlon Bucharesti Association, EFdeN, (SDE23 Host City Executives) the SDE23 edition was closed. The Closure was a result of continued repercussions caused by the COVID pandemic, which created high uncertainty and volatility, with ensuing economic, social, and public health challenges.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Solar Decathlon Europe

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Solar Decathlon Europe claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Solar Decathlon Europe before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Solar Decathlon Europe ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Solar Decathlon Europe

In research: Solar Decathlon Europe appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Solar Decathlon Europe in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Solar Decathlon Europe is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Building engineering, Energy conservation, Low-energy building, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Solar Decathlon Europe outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Solar Decathlon Europe in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Solar Decathlon Europe means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Solar Decathlon Europe out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Solar Decathlon Europe in simple terms?

Why does Solar Decathlon Europe matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Solar Decathlon Europe?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Solar Decathlon Europe.