Who is Robert Stirling

Have you seen those Stirling engines? Those almost magical heat engines that have enjoyed a renewed interest because they can run off sunlight- yes, solar energy can drive Stirling engines to make electricity! I have a small Stirling engine that runs off the heat from a cup of tea!

This webpage ("Squidoo lens") is all about the man who invented the Stirling engine- Robert Sterling a Scottish clergyman who had a passion for engineering and an early pioneer of alternative energy. As well as being a clergyman he was qualified in numerous sciences including mathematics and engineering and was fascinated with astronomy which led to him learning to make lenses and invent optical equipment.

His most famous invention, of course, is the Stirling engine which he created because steam engines had a tendency to explode! The invention of steel and stronger metals meant that the steam engine overtook the Stirling engine at the time. Today, with modern lightweight materials and the ever expanding interest and need to look for new forms of sustainable energy- the Stirling engine offers great potential.