Dawn of silicon solar

People have been harnessing renewable energy from the sun, wind, water, and land forever. And even though fossil fuels now dominate the energy picture, the journey of renewable energy is far from over. This slideshow will give you a glimpse of how renewable energy has evolved over the years, where it is now, and some ideas on where it's going. This photo from 1954 depicts an important moment when engineers at Bell Labs in New Jersey unveiled the first practical solar cell made from silicon, which is now the dominant material for solar panels. The basic photo-detector developed for this solar cell led to applications in digital cameras and optical networks.