Solar updraft tower

An interesting way to generate electricity from the sun w/o solar panels. Since a car heats up when the windows are up even on a cloudy day, due to the same greenhouse effect of glass, this should be able to use energy from the sun even on cloudy days.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_updraft_tower

The solar updraft tower is a renewable-energy power plant. It combines the chimney effect, the greenhouse effect and the wind turbine. Air is heated by sunshine and contained in a very large greenhouse-like structure around the base of a tall chimney, and the resulting convection causes air to rise up the updraft tower. This airflow drives turbines, which produce electricity.

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Heat can be stored inside the collector area greenhouse to be used to warm the air later on. Water, with its relatively high specific heat capacity, can be filled in tubes placed under the collector, increasing the energy storage as needed.[

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