Uses of Solar Energy

We know today that there are multiple uses of solar energy. We use the solar energy every day in many different ways.
When we hang laundry outside to dry in the sun, we are using the solar heat to do work, drying our clothes. Plants use the solar light to make food. Animals eat plants for food. And as we learned, decaying plants hundreds of millions of years ago produced the coal, oil and natural gas that we use today.
Very often there is confusion about the various methods used to harness solar energy.
Energy from the sun can be categorized in two ways – one is in the form of heat (or thermal energy) and the other is in the form of light energy.
Solar thermal technologies uses the solar heat energy to heat substances (such as water or air) for applications such as space heating, pool heating and water heating for homes and businesses. There are a variety of products on the market that uses solar thermal energy.
Often the produces used for this application are called solar thermal collectors and can be mounted on the roof of a building or in some other sunny locations.
The solar heat can also be used to produce electricity on a large utility scale by converting the solar energy into mechanical energy.
So, fossil fuels is actually solar energy stored millions and millions of years ago.
Indirectly, the sun or other are responsible for all our energy.
Even nuclear energy comes from a star because the uranium atomsused in nuclear energy were created in the fury of a nova – a star exploding.
Solar energy has a variety of uses. These include running a remote home, water heating, solar energy centres and efficient fuel. Solar cookers are an excellent way to indicate that we are using direct solar energy.
Solar Lanterns used by us are indicative factors that we are using solar energy.
Solar energy is consumed in the form of our using solar street lights. We have been using solar energy in the form of solar domestic lights.
By using solar power for water heating, we can have an almost zero cost swimming pool or hot water supply. Solar panels are installed on the roof and a duct is installed.
A transfer fluis is run along the duct from the panels to water and the heat energy is exchanged between the two.
So, instead of having high electric bills due to keeping our pool warm during the winter months or if it is cold all year around, we have ben trying solar powered heated systems.

What Is Solar Energy?

Sun is the source of all energies in this planet earth. This energy which is endowed by the sun is known as solar energy. This energy sparks off weather, climate and virtually all life on earth.
The most of the available flow of renewable energy comes from the heat and light. Also, solar based resources like those of wind and wave power, biomass and hydroelectricity also are the causes for renewable energy.
The energy of the sun is harnessed by the solar energy technologies for practical ends. Ever since the Greeks, Native Americans and Chinese were into being, the solar technologies were made use of.
It helped them in warming their buildings by orienting them towards the sun. Heating, electricity, lighting and even flight are some of the gifts endowed by modern solar technologies. Solar power is made use synonymously with solar energy.
It refers to the conversion of sunlight into electricity. With the help of photovoltaic effect, this is made possible.
Else, it can be done by heating a transfer fluid to generate steam to function the generator. Solar photovoltaic generate 0.04% of the world’s total energy usage in 2004. Our earth gets 174 peta watts of incoming solar radiation that is also known as insolation at the upper atmosphere.
Six percent of the insolation is reflected and 16 percent is taken in or absorbed. Clouds, dust and pollutants are such average atmospheric conditions that further diminish insolation traveling through the atmosphere by 20 percent due to reflection and 3 percent via absorption.
These conditions diminish the quantity of energy reaching the surface of the earth.
Also, they diffuse approximately twenty percent of the incoming light and filter portions of its spectrum. Approximately half of the insolation after going through the atmosphere is in the visible electromagnetic spectrum with the other half mostly in the infrared spectrum.
With the help of atmospheric convection, the absorption of solar energy affects the water cycle and winds. They get affected also because of the evaporation and condensation of water vapor. Sunlight is taken in by the oceans, plants and land masses after reaching the surfaces.
The thermohaline cycle is driven by the energy captured in the oceans.
Thus, solar energy is the driving force behind the ocean currents like those of thermohaline cycle and wind driven currents such as Gulf Stream. Besides, all the food we eat, wood we build with, and fossil fuels we make use are products of photosynthesis. For further information, you can check websites pertinent to solar energy.