Most of the electricity that we use on our planet today and also in the United States is derived from the use of fossil fuels, and this resource has been known to man from the time he first learnt how to generate power. Also, fossil fuels have existed for many ages and were found in abundance in the early years when power first began to be produced which led man to forget about worrying about the consequences of its use. And, now we are learning that this resource will soon expend itself out and so we need to look for alternative resources such as harnessing the power of the sun and creating solar energy.

A Good Alternative

Thus, when we look at some basic solar energy facts, we will come to realize that all is not lost for mankind and that there are enough renewable energy resources available from the sun to keep us going for some time to come. Also, based on available information and known solar energy facts, it is time for us to seriously begin considering making solar energy and other renewable energy sources as our main energy source, and so reduce our dependence on power generated by using fossil fuels.

The first and foremost solar energy fact that we know for sure is that the sun has an estimated life span of four and a half billion years, which means we can safely conclude that it is an almost endless source for our energy needs. Furthermore, another interesting solar energy fact is that the radiation from the sun measures in at approximately fourteen hundred watts per square meter, and compared to this supply, our best photo-voltaic cells are only able to capture a mere nineteen to fifty-six watts per square meter of this energy, or achieves just fifteen percent efficiency which works out to just 0.45 to 1.35 kilowatts per hour.

These are indeed interesting solar energy facts because it helps us realize that if we could use more solar panels, we would then be able to produce more energy from the sun than the combined output achievable while using oil and gas as well as other sources, and all this while assuming that we get only eight percent solar cell efficiency.

Another undeniable solar energy fact is that this energy source is clean, renewable and abundant and it also does not require fuels to generate power, though there are a few minor downsides as well such as not being useful in non-tropical regions, produces power only when there is daylight, and by using photo-voltaic cells, it requires to further convert the DC current produced to AC current.

Still, the bottom line is that based on the available solar energy facts, if solar energy production is undertaken on a massive scale, we could provide sufficient power to every household and also industrial unit on the planet and this is a realistic goal and not a dream.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS