Britain's clean energy revolution

Five charts to start your day

For the first time ever, renewable energy – that's wind, solar and hydropower combined – has generated more of Britain's electricity than fossil fuels. The numbers tell quite a story: renewables produced 37 percent of the country's power, edging ahead of fossil fuels at 35 percent.

What's particularly fascinating is how close wind power has come to overtaking gas as Britain's single largest power source. Wind stands at 29.34 percent, just a whisker behind gas at 30.4 percent. It's too close to call who'll win this race by year's end.

The transformation over the past decade is remarkable. Back then, gas and coal dominated, providing nearly 60 percent of Britain's electricity. Now, coal has virtually disappeared, contributing less than 1 percent, and Britain became the first G7 country to completely shut down its coal power plants this September.