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U's house takes 5th in solar contest

The U of M took fifth in a contest to build an attractive, energy-efficient solar house, the U.S. Department of Energy announced this morning.

Last update: October 16, 2009 - 11:21 PM

A solar house built by students at the University of Minnesota took fifth place in a national competition Friday.

The house was one of 19 in the fourth Solar Decathlon in Washington, put on by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Although the U's house didn't nab top overall honors, it placed first in contests for best lighting design and best engineering.

The Department of Energy announced the final results Friday morning. Team Germany came in first place overall, followed by the University of Illinois and Team California.

Students worked for months to build houses that were both energy efficient and attractive. They were judged in categories such as market viability and comfort.

The U's award-winning lighting scored points for its use of both natural and artificial light and its ease of operation.

The team noted its progress on Twitter. On Thursday it wrote: "It's cold in the house, team is dancing, jogging in place and doing jumping jacks to bring the temp. up from 58 to 61 degrees and climbing!"

JENNA ROSS

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