Solar-Powered Monte Rosa Alpine Hut is 90% Energy Independent

This remote alpine retreat calls to mind classic <a target="blank" href="http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/06/03/transportation-tuesday-the-solar-speedboat/">James Bond</a> architecture, complete with a futuristic design, advanced building technology, and killer views of the Matterhorn. Can't you just see Bond skiing down the glacier in a white ski suit, stealthily approaching his enemy's headquarters? You could imagine that the top of the roof pulls down to reveal a giant laser, which is used as a tractor beam to smash the moon into Earth as the villain demands <strike>700 million</strike> 700 billion dollars from the US Government. Oh wait, sorry, we've been having nightmares about the economy. But seriously though, this hut outside of Zermatt in the Swiss Alps is for real. It's the <a target="new" href="http://www.sac-cas.ch/About-us.26.0.html?&amp;L=3">Swiss Alpine Club's</a> new <a href="http://www.neuemonterosahuette.ch/index.php">Monte Rosa</a> mountaineer's hut, and it's 90% energy self-sufficient.

The autonomous alpine shelter, which resides at 2,810 meters above sea level, was designed by the <a target="blank" href="http://www.esc.ethz.ch/research/energyservices/buildings/monterosa">Department of Architecture</a> at the <a target="blank" href="http://www.esc.ethz.ch/research/energyservices/buildings/monterosa">Swiss Federal Technical University in Zurich</a> (ETH)

The four-story building is used by mountaineers, from all over the world as a base camp from which to go on <a target="blank" href="http://www.icicle-mountaineering.ltd.uk/monte%2Brosa%2Bski%2Btour.html">expeditions</a> up the mountains and glaciers.

The retreat was designed by both students and professionals at the <a target="blank" href="http://www.arch.ethz.ch/">ETH</a> in a combined effort to create a modern, efficient building. Interestingly, the structure was pre-fabricated from from wood and digitally optimized to become a state of the art hotel - <em>so</em> James Bond. The hut received a <a target="blank" href="http://www.holcimfoundation.org/T755/A08EUbr.htm">Holcim Bronze Award for Sustainable Construction</a> upon its completion.

Since the hut is situated at the edge of a glacier and outside of the range of power lines, it was designed to be 90% energy independent and very energy-efficient. The majority of its energy is generated from photovoltaic panels and solar thermal systems, while the rest comes from a cogenerative <a target="new" href="http://www.inhabitat.com/2008/10/02/one-bryant-park-nearly-completed/">heat and power system</a> as a backup source.

Monte Rosa Hut Guest Room Layout

Monte Rosa restaurant layout