The Solar Decathlon is an international competition created by the U.S. Department of Energy in which universities from all over the world meet to design, build and operate a grid-connected, solar powered house.
The houses use solar energy as the only energy source and are equipped with all the technologies that permit maximum energy efficiency. During the final phase of the competition teams assemble their houses in a main expo area, open to the general public, while undergoing the 10 contests of the competition, reason for which this event is called Decathlon. (‘Deca’ derives from Greek and means ten).
The first Solar Decathlon was held in 2002 and previous additions have been organized in different areas including the U.S, Europe and China.
