Many people wonder how does solar energy work and the simple answer is that solar thermal energy, the sun’s ultraviolet rays, transfers heat directly to air or water to be used as electricity or to light up a solar sign along the main street and highways.  There are many uses for solar energy that will save the country millions of dollars in utility costs.

 

There are two types of solar energy conversion that makes energy and both use solar panels to harness the sun’s ultraviolet light.  One is solar thermal energy and the next is photovoltaic energy.

 

Solar thermal energy uses the sun’s energy directly to generate heat while the solar panels collect the high temperature to be used for water and space heating in buildings and homes. 

 

The photovoltaic method converts the sun’s power into electricity using a power grid and this is fairly complicated to explain.  It’s not rocket science, but close to it.

 

Furthermore, there are two types of solar energy, direct solar energy and indirect solar energy.  Direct solar energy uses a one step process in transferring it into usable energy.  An example of direct solar energy would be sunlight striking a solar cell in which electricity is immediately generated or sunlight is absorbed by a fibre optic cable that is attached to the outside of a building and lights the inside.

 

Indirect solar energy uses more than one step to achieve maximum solar energy.  Examples of indirect solar energy would be hydroelectric dams or wind turbines that derive their energy from the solar-caused wind, rain, or other such climate interactions.

 

The cost of a solar panel installation is probably more than most people imagine when they first begin to investigate placing solar panels on their property to save on their utility bills.  The set up of a solar panel can seem quite expensive however, the cost is recouped within the first year’s usage because there is no expensive fuel or cost for man-hours intended for maintenance of the solar panels.

 

When considering installing solar panels to harness the sun’s energy, an individual must consider the pros and cons including budgetary restraints and spatial issues because many solar panels need a never ending and unobstructed supply of sunlight.

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