The U.S. Department of Energy today announced that the Solar Decathlon 2013 will take place October 3 through October 13, 2013 at the Orange County Great Park.

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon challenges collegiate teams to design, build and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency.

The competition houses will be open to visitors on eight days over two weekends. Public hours will be from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily: Thursday, October 3 – Sunday, October 6, 2013 and Thursday, October 10 – Sunday, October 13, 2013.

This free event will showcase 20 highly efficient, solar-powered houses in a specially constructed solar village at the Orange County Great Park. Visitors can gather ideas to use in their own homes and learn about energy-saving features and products that can help them save energy and money.

“We look forward to the arrival of the Energy Department’s Solar Decathlon to the Great Park in October 2013,” said Mike Ellzey, Chief Executive Officer, Orange County Great Park Board Corporation. “This event will showcase the Park’s commitment to sustainability, education and public engagement and will bring economic benefits to the Southern California region.”

The Solar Decathlon is a biennial event that was launched in 2002. The Great Park was selected as the site for the Solar Decathlon 2013 through a national competition. This will be the first time that the event has been held outside of Washington, D.C.

Twenty university teams have been selected to participate in the Solar Decathlon 2013, including several west coast universities, including the University of Southern California, Stanford, California Institute of Technology, Santa Clara University, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Arizona State University and the University of New Mexico.

For more information, go to www.ocgp.org