We all know the sun is a source of energy, providing us with heat and light. But this limitless source of energy is ultimately a great way to engage in new and environmentally friendly ways to live, especially given the no running cost to produce solar energy, so you can power your family home without paying a platinum price for your bills!
Every morning, upon sunrise the sun raises and penetrates through the atmosphere hitting all in its path. It does this day in day out, and will continue to do this throughout the future for many generations to come.
In the past the Egyptians and the Greeks have been known to capitalize on this magnificent source of energy, they heated anything they liked, by concentrating the sun’s radiation upon the object.
Another encouraging fact about solar energy is that it is a non polluting source of power. The sun’s energy is clean from any pollutants. Conversely, current energy solutions such as petroleum or organic fuels leave residues and often also leave harmful gases during the manufacturing of the energy.
Solar energy not only presents clean and free to use capabilities, but also is extremely reliable. The sun has been in operation for around four and half billion years and is predicted to burn on for another four to five billion years, hence its reliability to continue burning for many generations to come.
If you’re worried about periods of dark, solar energy has the capability of being stored and then has the ability to be accessed when demanded. If in doubt, an alternative or back up solution such as a wind mill or wind turbine is a great alternative to have if in doubt.
Solar energy has no limits. We can consume and absorb as much energy as required from the sun. Reports state that the amount of energy that hits earth every few minutes to predicted to have the ability to power to whole United States of America for a whole year.
So if all the energy the sun has such power, why aren’t we all capturing the sun’s energy and powering the whole planet for free?
In the present day this is a true goal to achieve, especially given the amount of research and studies being conducted on solar energy. One of the major issues is change, people resist change. As the baby boomers and older generations grow older society begins to adapt new beliefs and values. Continually awareness and education on the environment in our schools helps implant the concern for green house gases and other environmentally damaging elements.
Who knows, the children of today may grow up with the strong foundations of environmentally friendly concerns and other renewable solutions, but time can only tell.
Another reason is the acquisition of solar energy; currently we are only able to successfully capture solar energy using the following methods.
The reflection method is based on the concentration of the sun’s rays, using a set of mirrors directing the sun’s light towards the targeting item. This method is similar to the dish antenna you may have installed at your home, except on a much larger scale.
The radiation method is the same process used to power solar hot water systems. The typical structure is to have a black painted piping in between two layers of glass in which water flows through the pipe and is heated via the suns rays.
Solar panels are the most recent invention. The solar cell is composed of treated silicon crystals, which when hit by the rays of the sun knock electrons out of their orbits and thereby create a void that needs to be filled by electrons from the other silicon crystals, this creates an imbalance of electrons and hence a flow of current which can be either immediately utilized or else stored away in a rechargeable battery.
Sounds complicated? Don’t worry the scientific process is always complex, all you need to know is solar energy has the capability to power your home using the light the sun produces.
