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The Women That Revolutionized Renewable Energy

March 8, 2024

Renewable energy is on the rise in the United States. Solar panels and electric vehicles are common sights these days, but not long ago they were ideas made into reality. Countless scientists and innovators worked tirelessly to develop the renewable technology that we use every day. Some of the most important were the women who were pioneers in their fields and leading thinkers that changed the world. In honor of International Women’s Day, we wanted to highlight the pivotal contributions of a few of the women who helped shape our energy future.  

Maria Telkes

What’s in a name? For Maria Telkes, the Sun Queen couldn’t be a better fit. Born in Hungary in 1900, Telkes was an early pioneer in the study and practical application of solar energy. A respected scientist and researcher, Telkes’ career took her from the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and Westinghouse Electric to the Solar Energy Conversion Project at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the U.S. Office of Scientific Research and Development during World War II.[1]  

Among her multitude of achievements, Telkes’ most prominent project was the Dover Sun House. Built in Dover, Mass. in 1948, the house was the world’s first home heated solely by solar energy.[2] Eighteen 10-foot-tall windows absorbed the sun’s warmth, which was then transferred to canisters of Glauber’s salt, a form of sodium sulfate that can store and release energy as it melts and solidifies. The stored warm air was then circulated throughout the home.[3] Although the solar heating system failed after a few years, Telkes’ work continued. In 1980, she helped with the development of the Carlisle House, the world’s first home fully powered by solar energy.[1] Telkes earned more than 20 patents throughout her career, many of which harnessed the power of the sun. These include:  

  • An inflatable water desalination kit that eventually became part of the military’s standard-issue emergency medical kit. 

  • A solar-powered, electricity-free oven that could bake at temperatures as high as 400 degrees. 

  • A temperature control unit that transformed absorbed solar radiation into heat circulated within a home. 

Professor, innovator, inductee into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and so much more, Telkes was a 20th-century renewable energy leader worthy of the name Sun Queen.   

You can learn more about Dr. Maria Telkes in The Sun Queen, a documentary produced by PBS’ American Experience available on Prime Video.  

Katharine Burr Blodgett

In an era of profound scientific discoveries, Katharine Burr Blodgett’s work stands out. Look around and you will likely see something influenced by her work even today. Blodgett is best known for inventing non-reflective glass, which is used on everything from eyeglasses and computer screens to telescope and camera lenses. Her noteworthy career began in 1918 when she was the first female scientist hired by General Electric Research Laboratories. Soon thereafter, she was also the first woman to graduate from Cambridge University with a Ph.D. in physics.[4]

In 1939, Blodgett patented what is now known as the Langmuir-Blodgett film. When enough of the film is applied to the glass, it makes it transparent and non-reflective.[5] Her innovations helped pave the way for the creation of solar panels and LED lights, which use 75 percent less energy than incandescent lights.[6] Blodgett earned many accolades throughout her career and the Society of Chemical Industry has an award named in her honor. Blodgett’s innovation wasn’t just a big step forward for the development of renewable energy. Her work set the stage for the modern world as we know it.

Annie Easley   

Born in Birmingham, Ala. in 1933, Annie Easley was a mathematician, computer scientist and one of the first African American employees at what is today NASA’s John H. Glenn Research Center.[7] Easley applied her extensive match skills to perform complex calculations for an array of research projects in her early career. As NASA replaced its human computers with machines, she taught herself computer programming and eventually graduated from Cleveland State University with a degree in mathematics.[8]

As part of NASA’s Launch Vehicles Division, Easley wrote computer code used in researching alternative energy conversion systems, including battery technology that was used on early hybrid vehicles. She also worked on the Centaur rocket, which would eventually land the first American space probe on the moon. A pioneer in many ways, Easley helped create opportunities for other people of color in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields even after she retired in 1989.[9]

Edith Clarke 

There are trailblazers, and there are people like Edith Clarke. Educator, inventor and groundbreaker, Clarke did a lot more than shatter glass ceilings. She was the first woman ever employed professionally as an electrical engineer and the first female professor of electrical engineering in the United States. Additionally, Clarke was also the first woman to graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with a degree in electrical engineering, which she earned in 1919.[10]  

Before becoming the first female electrical engineer at General Electric in 1926, Clarke invented – and earned a patent for – a graphical calculator that made solving voltage, current and impedance calculations in electric transmission lines 10 times more efficient. Her work has contributed to the development of smart grid technology.[11] The International Energy Agency defines smart grids as "electricity networks that use digital and other advanced technologies to monitor and manage the transport of electricity from all generation sources to meet the demands of end users." Smart grids can help with the clean energy transition by better matching supply and demand when including variable power sources like wind and solar.

Later in her career, she helped with the design and construction of hydroelectric dams like the Hoover Dam.[12] An inductee of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, Clarke helped lead the way for women in electrical engineering.  

Organizations that Support Women in Renewable Energy

These women played a major role in advancing renewable energy in the United States. There are many more innovators and energy leaders out there today. Yet women make up just 30% of the wind and solar power generation workforce, according to the 2022 U.S. Energy and Employment Jobs Report. Organizations like the Association for Women in Science, Women of Renewable Industries and Sustainable Energy, American Association of University Women and Society of Women Engineers are just a few of the many organizations that support women in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields.  

Want to read more? Check out How to prepare for Texas hurricane season, the top 10 energy users in the home and our other blog posts here.

[1] The Lemelson-MIT Program, "Maria Telkes"

[2] Architectuul., "Dover Sun House"

[3] American Experience, "The Dover Sun House"

[4] Edison Tech Center, "Katharine Burr Blodgett"

[5] National Inventors Hall of Fame, "Katharine Burr Blodgett"

[6] U.S. Department of Energy, "EERE Celebrates Women Leaders and Pioneers in Energy"

[7] Association for Women in Science, "Annie Easley"

[8] The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, "Annie Easley"

[9] Capitol Technology University, "Annie Easley, NASA Mathematician and STEM Pioneer"

[10] Texas State Historical Association, "Clarke, Edith (1883-1959)"

[11] Electrical Contractor, "Edith Clarke: Early Pioneer of Grid Analysis"

[12] National Inventors Hall of Fame, "How Edith Clarke Solved Equations and Advanced STEM Fields"

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