Advantages And Disadvantages Of Solar Power

In this modern fast paced world that we live in, there are many issues that are looked over, energy is one of these. As a world, we are dependant on dwindling fossil fuel supplies and take for granted electricity, oil, and gas. There are four completely renewable sources of energy around us that should be used and developed, they are: wind, growing plants, flowing water, and the sun. These sources of energy are the ones we should be tapping, because they are reliable and renewable. Harnessing the suns energy is the most certain and ultimate energy source. Looking at a brief history and some facts about solar energy, a glimpse of the future can be seen, a future not dependant on

The sun is a massive burning ball of hydrogen that outputs gigantic quantities of energy every second. Sunlight is an excellent energy source and the future of using solar power is very exciting. The Sun's energy can be used to heat and cool buildings, generate electricity, operate communication, and GPS systems and even power solar cars. The sun’s energy is clean and solar panels used to harness the energy are low maintenance.

The increase in oil prices, the depletion of fossil fuel, and increase in consumption of energy has led to finding an alternate source of electricity generation through sustainable energy resources. The sun was humankind's first source of power, and with a little effort to make it more efficient, it may be the only source of energy we may need for the future. Among various sustainable sources, solar energy is the fastest growing,

The sun is the source of all life on Earth. In just one hour the sunlight hitting the earth’s surface provides enough energy to power the global economy for a full year (Brown, 2015). The sun will continue to burn for billions of years, making it an unquestionably reliable source for renewable energy. Modern-day photovoltaic (PV) solar cells rely on the photoelectric effect, a phenomenon where light is used to free electrons from a solid surface - usually silicon - to create electricity. PV panels are typically installed on homes and buildings, or in ground arrangements, sometimes called solar farms.

A switch from coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear power plants to solar power plants could supply 69 percent of the United States electricity and 35 percent of its total energy by 2050. Solar plants made 74% of all new U.S. electric capacity installed in 2014, demonstrating the rapidly increasing role that solar is playing in the energy market and its fight against climate change. Solar energy is now generating enough clean, reliable and affordable electricity to effectively power 3 million American homes, while

In addition, solar energy operational costs are manageable. It is free from monthly charges compared to conventional sources of energy. Solar energy does not require raw materials such as oil and coal, and once the panels are built, there will be no monthly charges. In addition, the prices of fossil fuels are increasing day by day, and this means conventional energy will be very expensive. Solar energy will remain the most capable world’s future power supply because, it is cost effective once the plants are built, and there will be no transport costs like for conventional energy sources. Therefore, solar energy is cost-effective, and will help in future energy supply, as the maintenance cost is affordable, as long as they are installed properly, and are working efficiently ( Hans, 2012). Furthermore, with the improvement and advancement of technology, it will increase its efficiency, and cost of production thus, making it more cost effective and the world’s best

In order for one to further understand the importance of solar energy, the problem of global warming must be explained. As defined by Webster’s Dictionary, “Global Warming” is an increase in the earth’s average atmospheric temperature that causes corresponding changes in climate and that may result from the greenhouse effect. With an average increase in atmospheric temperatures, our planet is slowly deteriorating. In order to stall or halt this global destruction, countries must turn to solar energy as a cleaner alternative to the depletion of fossil fuels. Solar energy creates a homeostasis for the climate. Due to its ability to decrease global climate changes, solar power can address global warming in several ways.

Bob Johnstone, author of Switching to Solar, proclaims that every day the sun produces 970 trillion kilowatt-hours of energy (Johnson 11). Volker Quaschning – writer of Understanding Renewable Energy Systems – puts this fact in perspective by explaining how the world only uses one ten-thousandth of that quantity to power itself (Quaschning 22). This means that if humanity can find a way to harness even a fraction of the sun’s energy, the world will no longer need fossil fuels or other harmful energy sources. There are, of course, many ways to translate the sun’s power into electricity, but one stands out. After analyzing the benefits and possible downfalls, it is clear that solar technology holds incredible potential. Not only is it pure

However, the research has also suggested that solar technology has demonstrated an increase of approximately 39% in production and investment in the last decade and is growing faster than any other renewable technology (Zweibel, 2010; Lloyd & Forest, 2010). Still, the research concluded that the limited availability of natural resources, which would be used to manufacture SETs, could restrict the development of solar technology as well as other renewable resource technologies. However, given that solar technology has seen an increase in research and development, solar energy could establish an opportunity for expanding our electricity supply system without overconsuming on nonrenewable resources.

The amount of energy used by the United States and the entirety of the world is predicted to drastically increase over the next few years. In 2001 the worldwide average energy consumption rate was approximately 13.5 TW (terawatt), but it is predicted that by 2100 that rate could triple to about 43 TW. In order to account for this greater need it becomes necessary to take action, as current production levels cannot meet the projected increase in energy consumption. There are many different approaches that could be taken so as to adjust for these forecasted levels. The following pages will consider the pros and cons to the following question: Should the United States Department of Energy promote a comprehensive

Solar energy is radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed using a range of ever-evolving technologies such as solar heating, photovoltaics, solar thermal energy, solar architecture, molten salt power plants and artificial photosynthesis. It is an important source of renewable energy and its technologies are broadly characterized as either passive solar or active solar depending on how they capture and distribute solar energy or convert it into solar power. Active solar techniques include the use of photovoltaic systems, concentrated solar power and solar water heating to harness the energy. Passive solar techniques include orienting a building to the Sun, selecting materials with favorable thermal mass or light-dispersing properties, and designing spaces that naturally circulate air. The large magnitude of solar energy available makes it a highly appealing source of electricity. The United Nations Development Programme in its 2000 World Energy Assessment found that the annual potential of solar energy was 1,575-49,837 exajoules . This is several times larger than the total world energy consumption, which was 559.8 EJ in 2012. In 2011, the International Energy Agency said that "the development of affordable, inexhaustible and clean solar energy technologies will have huge longer-term benefits. It will increase countries' energy security through reliance on an indigenous, inexhaustible and mostly import-independent resource, enhance sustainability, reduce

Solar energy and its use isn’t new to the world. It has been used by various societies beginning from 7thCentury B.C, when the sun’s heat was concentrated by glass and mirrors to light fires. Today, we have everything from solar-powered buildings to solar-powered vehicles. By and large solar technology has some environmental, economic, psychological and ethical implications for our society. Actions taken by companies and individuals to increase the use of solar technology will create good local jobs, improve our environment and reduce our dependence on foreign oil while doing what’s ethical and moral for our society.

This article was written to inform people about solar power. It covers how solar power is produced, can be harvested, how it works, if it is renewable, the advantages and disadvantages of solar power as well as if solar power is feasible in South Africa which is related to my hypothesis. This article is not biased and gives both sides to using solar power energy.

Solar energy is a gateway that will ideally lead us far from our petroleum subordinate sources. The significant issue with sun based board innovation is that the efficiencies for sun based power frameworks are still poor and the expenses per kilo-watt-hour (Kwh) are not focused, much of the time, to rival conventional sources in the use. Solar

The world has giant solar energy resources that haven 't been greatly used so far. Alternative energy presently accounts for a tiny share of world primary energy consumption, however its use is projected to extend powerfully over the outlook amount to 2030.