Monday, October 19, 2009 at 3:06:04 PM - by Danny Vo

The public is better educated on solar energy in light of a recently concluded competition featuring advanced home designs that were displayed on Washington D.C.'s National Mall.

Teams representing various universities in the United States and several other countries displayed their solar-powered homes for the past several weeks in Washington. The entries are judged on factors like design, technologies used, energy efficiency and more.

According to an announcement from the Department of Energy, Team Germany, comprised of students from the city of Darmstadt, won this year, followed by the University of Illinois and Urbana-Champaign and Team California, which included students from several of the state's universities.

The winning entry was a "Cube House" capable of producing surplus energy even on rainy days, and was said to mark the second time Team Germany has won the competition since the last one in 2007.

Entries this year for the first time were judged on a structure's net metering capabilities, or its ability to generate surplus power. Other solar energy challenges include powering appliances and home entertainment devices while also maintaining a comfortable indoor temperature and providing hot water.