The University of Southern California's entry in The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon nears completion on the seventh day of Assembly at Irvine, California's Orange County Great Park. (Image: Stefano Paltera/U.S. Department of Energy)

Welcome to the U.S. Department of Energy's 2013 Solar Decathlon, where 20 teams are showing off their originally designed homes of the future – all which are powered by the sun, and produce more energy than they use.

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The 20 teams are from universities and colleges, some coming from as far away as Vienna, Austria and the Czech Republic. The goal of the two-week decathlon is to create solar-powered houses that are highly efficient, affordable, low maintenance, and that simply look cool.

“The event provides student competitors with unique real-world training to become the clean energy workforce of the future, and helps ensure that our nation remains competitive in the global race for clean energy," Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said in a news release.

The 20 teams have spent the last two years preparing for the competition. Just like the Olympic decathlon, teams compete in 10 contests and then the homes are judged in categories including architecture, affordability and attractiveness.

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Students from Vermont's Norwich University designed their "Delta T-90" home with New England's dramatic in mind. The combined team from Arizona State University and The University of New Mexico built the " (Solar Homes Adapting to the Desert Equilibrium) by weaving native desert plant life into some of the home's basic functions, like heating and cooling.

See the homes, and read more about them, in the slideshow above. If you're close enough to Irvine visit, you can from Oct. 10-13 at Orange County Great Park.

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