How does Solar Power Work?
How does Solar Power work? Converting the suns raysThis is an awful lot of power. We can work this power in so many different ways, converting the suns rays into other energy sources - typically electricity, hot water or heat. Whilst we cannot convert this energy with 100% efficiency, we are learning how to harness power from the sun more and more effectively. Of course, the sun is not always overhead and the actual power from the sun - called solar irradiance - depends on the season, the weather and the time of day. Thankfully this can be measured so we can find out how much energy the sun is providing us at different locations on a daily basis at different times of the year. To find out the power of the sun where you live throughout the year, see our solar irradiance calculator. We can harness power from the sun and make it work for us either directly or indirectly. For example:
Some of the ways we are using the power of the sun to work for us are listed below. Click on the different links to find out more about what each system does and how they work:
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How does solar power work? The energy from the photons we get from the sun is quite extraordinary. On a clear day, when the sun is directly overhead, the energy we receive from the sun is equivalent to 1kW of power for every square metre of surface area the protons reach.
This book is a simple, practical guide to using photovoltaic panels and designing and installing photovoltaic PV systems.