2010 review of green technologies

In September, the UK opened the world's biggest offshore windfarm at Thanet, off the coast of Kent. The eight lines of turbines, running north-west to south-east, cover a total area of 35sq km off Foreness Point near Margate. With 100 turbines, each 115 metres high with 44-metre blades, it can generate 300 megawatts (MW) of power – enough for 200,000 homes Photograph: Frank Baron/Guardian In 2010, feed-in tariffs started to generate cash . Householders with small-scale green energy systems such as solar panels and micro-wind turbines receive up to £1,000 a year for the electricity they generate under a new government scheme Photograph: Graham Turner/Guardian Engineers raced to design the world's biggest offshore wind turbines . The revolutionary 10MW Aerogenerator X, a new breed of mammoth offshore wind turbine in development by British firm Arup Photograph: Wind Power Limited and Grimshaw Solar Impulse, the experimental solar-powered aeroplane, completed its first 24-hour test flight . The record feat brings it one step closer to the makers' ultimate aim of circling the globe using only energy from the sun Photograph: Fabrice Coffrini/AP Solar-powered boat Türanor raises hopes of a sun-fuelled future . Makers hope the maiden voyage of world's largest solar-powered catamaran will prove that the sun can fuel the world Photograph: Stringer/Reuters Europe unites to build renewable energy 'supergrid' . It would connect turbines off the wind-lashed north coast of Scotland with Germany's vast arrays of solar panels, and join the power of waves crashing on to the Belgian and Danish coasts with the hydro-electric dams nestled in Norway's fjords: Europe's first electricity grid dedicated to renewable power became a political reality in January, as nine countries formally drew up plans to link their clean energy projects around the North Sea Photograph: Johannes Eisele/AFP 'Smashing the Noddy stereotype' – the UK's first green supercar took to the roads in November Photograph: Adrian Sherratt for the Guardian The Strata 'Razor' tower : the cutting-edge of eco-construction. The tower block in Elephant and Castle, London, will generate nearly a tenth of its own energy through its three rooftop turbines Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images In December, London launched the UK's first permanent hydrogen bus that will travel along a popular tourist route Photograph: Julian Makey/Rex Features The pioneering marine technology Wave Hub device was successfully installed off the Cornish coast in September Photograph: Simon Burt/South West RDA China is prevailing in the global race for green jobs in sectors from solar panels to advanced lighting, and appears to be on an unstoppable upward path, an annual report by cleantech research firm Clean Edge said in October Photograph: AFP/AFP/Getty Images Launch of the Bloom box fuel cell generates a slice of Apple hype . Not every company can boast Arnold Schwarzenegger, Colin Powell and the heads of Google and Walmart at its launch. Even more unlikely, the firm in question makes what some may regard as a less than sexy clean energy device. But such was the razzmatazz that accompanied the unveiling of Bloom ­Energy's eagerly awaited 'energy server' in February Photograph: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America General Motors launched the Chevrolet Volt , its new electric hybrid car, in the US in December Photograph: Emile Wamsteker/GM Handout/EPA In August, the world's largest tidal turbine was unveiled at a facility in Invergordon, Scotland. The AK1000 was developed by Atlantis Resources Corporation, is capable of generating enough electricity for more than 1,000 homes and is designed for harsh weather and rough, open ocean environments such as the Scottish coast Photograph: Mike Brookes Roper/PA