Solar Power

Many hope that the sight we see above will become more common in the coming years: solar panels installed on a roof, a sign that part or all of the electricity for a building is provided by the sun. Solar power represents a significant opportunity for countries and communities to reduce their use of electricity that relies on fossil fuels, in addition to geothermal power, micro wind and other forms of alternative energy.

Sunlight is a naturally occurring resource, a form of energy that can be instantly converted into usable electricity. The traditional method for converting sunlight into electricity is with the solar cell, also known as the photovoltaic (photo = light, voltaic = volts, or electricity)

Below we see a solar cell, which is manufactured from a refined form of the naturally occurring element, silicon. Silicon is the same material that is used in computer chips.

Here is an explanation of how solar solar cells work:

Solar-Powered Devices

Some of the first solar-powered electronic devices were calculators, which required very small amounts of electricity. If you've never seen a calculator, it's just a simple device that helps you do math, and before there were personal computers around, people had calculators. (If you've never seen one, most computers have a virtual calculator available - on Mac, you go to your hard drive, and there's a calculator program in the Applications folder. On Windows, you can try clicking on the Start Menu.)

A majority of the electricity created by solar power is by solar farms, which are connected to public electricity grids and run by utilities. They use solar panels and other kinds of solar collectors, including solar dishes:

The Sun

Solar power relies on the sun, which is a star that is constantly on fire, a ball of intense energy, an entire planet, which keeps the Earth warm enough to sustain life.

The sun generates a tremendous amount of radiation of various kinds, which is transmitted millions of miles away as light, and radiant heat, and on wavelengths you can't see or feel.

Solar energy enters reaches the earth surface through a variety of filters. Some radiation that the sun produces (which can be quite harmful) is deflected by the magnetic field around the earth, and the rest goes through the atmosphere. Then a portion of the energy is reflected from the earth's surface back into the atmosphere.

RELATED LINKS

For a directory of helpful green links, including free online videos on renewable energy, organizations and related books, see the LINKS section.

Solar Energy: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_energy

Solar Panel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_panel

Solar Cell: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cell

Suggested Topics/Questions to Explore/Discuss

Sun: How much sun does solar power require?

Supply: What are the traditional materials that solar power requires? What is the available supply of these materials? Are there any new technologies that use different techniques or materials?

Percentage: In your country, what percentage of the total required electricity is currently produced by solar power?

Grid: National electricity grids have times of the day when usage peaks, and seasonal variations, such as when people use air conditioners. How does the consistency of solar power relate to an electricity grid?


Learning Techniques

Try searching for more information using Google, YouTube or Wikipedia, by coming up with words and phrases for questions or concerns. You can also add depth to your learning by pursuing opposing viewpoints.

Ex: Try searching for "solar power" on YouTube, or "solar power" + "limitations" on Google