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Who knew a place in the sun could feel just like home?

From now through next fall, the Rice University Solar Decathlon team will be building a place in the sun. One of 20 university-based groups selected by the U.S. Department of Energy to compete in the 2009 Solar Decathlon, the Rice team received $100,000 to design, build and operate a home that runs completely on solar energy — without sacrificing modern comforts and aesthetics. All of the competition homes will be displayed in fall 2009 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., where they will be judged in 10 areas: architecture, engineering, market viability, lighting, communications, comfort, appliances, hot water, energy balance and home entertainment. The Rice team will start constructing and testing components of its solar-powered home this fall and hopes to have it ready for an exhibition early next summer. Then it’s off to D.C., where a savvy design and a sunny outlook just might win the Rice team its own place in the sun.