After sleeping for about 13 hours, I have finally started getting settled into my new home in the middle of the Negev desert. The most impressive thing so far is the view that can be seen from my room, which is not far from the edge of this:

It is surprisingly cool here, as there is a nice breeze and (most importantly) NO HUMIDITY!

I was invited over to my sponsor’s (David Faiman) house soon after  my arrival yesterday. It was impressive because it is passively cooled — no AC! David is a brilliant and entertaining individual — he owns the only original copy of an 1826 opera, and has even produced a recording of the same composer’s work!

This morning I woke up early and took all of the pictures posted thus far (while it was still cool out). The Center for Desert Research is about ten minutes walking distance, so it’s good to get some brief exercise.

View of a reflector from outside the facility.

Today I was brought up to speed by David about the basics of solar photovoltaics, and it was a good thing I’d just finished a semester on E&M! Afterwards, I was introduced to most of the faculty (there are only 16 total) of the Desert Center, and attended a lecture about similar solar installations in Australia and the potential for Israeli-Australian collaboration.

The technical portion focused specifically on modeling dust accumulation on the reflector, and drag forces from wind that can sometimes lift up entire arrays! This is a scary thought, when you have large ones that weigh up to 20 tons.

I’ve been told my work will encompass both modeling and collecting measurements outside, so it should be a pretty exciting summer! My next project is to sniff out a summer Hebrew class on campus — it would make things a lot easier around here!