Energy and Buildings in the 20th Century; a project of the U.S. Department of Energy's Efficiency and Renewable Energy program.

Bringing you a prosperous future where energy is clean, abundant, reliable, and affordable

1970-1979

1976
Unit One, First Solar Village
Santa Fe, NM

Framed insulated walls on the outside and open adobe walls on the inside keep temperatures stable in this home. A greenhouse acts as a solar collector to provide heat and light. The second owner, an Energy Department scientist, developed a standardized way to measure its passive solar heating. As hosts to visitors from around the world, the owners helped popularize solar house designs.

1976 Unit One, First Solar Village, Santa Fe, NM

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1970 First Earth Day, April 22

1972 Handheld calculator

1973 Cellular telephone

1973 Sears Tower, Chicage, world's tallest building

1977 President Carter establishes U.S. Department of Energy

1978 U.S, first to ban CFCs to protect ozone layer

1979 Sony Walkman

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