Solar Energy Facts
Our sun, which is the nearest star, bathes us with an enormous amount of energy every second of the day. The sun is considered an "alternative" energy source even though it is the mother of nearly all natural resources sources we use. In fact, without the sun's natural resources, life on this planet would never have been developed. Oxygen is produced from plants that use the sun's natural light to grow. the results of which is rich oxygen yield and a bounty of assorted fruits and vegetables. So in reality, we humans have been making use of this "substitute" natural energy source since the dawn of time. Put another way, when you think about it, the energy that is created by the sun's power is really the only energy source that we on Earth have. For instance all forms of fossil fuels are a result of stored energy received from sunshine. Gas, oil, and coal are all the products of decayed plants that grew millions of years ago from the sun's energy. Wind energy is additionally a product of weather patterns that are driven by the sun's energy. Biomass fuels such as wood additionally rely on sunlight to grow. With the possible exception of nuclear power, we have always relied on the sun in one way or another.
Even though the sun has been around since the beginning of time, and harnessing it's power directly is a relatively new development. While high ongoing purchase and installation costs can be a barrier for many who'd like to enter the solar energy market, solar energy is rapidly becoming more efficient, and cost competitive with traditional energy sources. Start With The Most Obvious Things Some of the simplest ways homeowners can take advantage of energy from the sun includes drying clothes outdoors on a clothesline on a sunny day, to utilizing many passive solar design techniques to heat a home during the wintertime months. Solar water heating is another common choice for using the energy of the sun very effectively. These systems are a notable entry level step into the world of solar energy as they have a low first cost, are simple to install and are time-tested. The fantastic thing about photovoltaic panel arrays is they can meet most of the electrical needs, if not all of the electrical needs of a typical home, replacing the pollution of fossil fuel sources.
The following are some of the solar natural resources facts that we can capture from our sun with our high tech collectors and sun can act like a giant storage battery in the sky to supply us with unending energy to use wherever and whenever we need it. One hour of sunlight that hits our earth generates more natural resources than the entire population of our planet can use in one year. Solar energy is measured in units called watts and kilowatts or kilowatt-hours. 1 kilowatt equals 1000 watts of electricity. To light one 100 watt light bulb for 10 hours will take 1 kilowatt of power or (1kWh). The DOE (Department of energy) estimated that an average home in the United State used approximately 866 kilowatt hours of power per month in the year 1999. In order to produce approximately 1 kilowatt of power, a residential solar energy system will necessitate about 10 to 12 panels in the array, which works out to about 100 net squire feet of area. About 1,600 kilowatts of energy will be created by a one kilowatt residential array that receives an average of 5.5 hours of sunlight every day. This would equal burning about 160 pounds of coal, which additionally pollutes our atmosphere with 300 pounds of carbon dioxide gas. Even with a typical efficiencies of only 15 percent that typical solar panels get, there is so much energy that hits the earth every day, it makes sense to invest in a solar panel system both commercially and for smaller scale residence systems. Research and development is leading to a gradual decline in the price of solar energy technology of around 3 to 5% a year. It Has Never Been Better To Invest In Solar Technology With improving efficiencies and technologies, the ongoing decrease in first time costs, and the constant increase in the amount of traditional natural resources sources like coal and oil, there's never been a better time to invest in solar energy! But wait, if you want to make the move, but you sill are not sure, look into some of the tax breaks that are associated with these systems. There are some substantial tax credits being offered by our federal, state and local governments which make this even an easier choice to go to this alternative green energy source. Article Source Solar Energy Facts. For Additional Green Tips: Green Living Made Easy.
