Solar Energies
Learning to harvest and utilize energy from the sun is one of the most important scientific pursuits of our time. Currently the Earth absorbs enough energy hourly from the sun to last the planet for an entire year - If we can capture it
Why Are Solar Energies Important?
Solar energy represents the largest potential energy source in our world and if we could use even a fraction of the energy that it bombards Earth with daily then it would solve the world energy crisis. The sun is also responsible for providing almost all other forms of energy such as wind energy so researching new ways to utilize it is critical to the development of our planet and our species.
Different Kinds Of Solar Energy
There are more types of solar energy and potential solar energies than you realize. There are primary solar energies like photovoltaic energy which converts sunlight into electricity and thermal solar energy which uses heat transfer from the suns rays.
There are also secondary solar energy systems such as wind power, biomass energy and hydroelectricity for example. The limitations of solar power for our energy requirements boil down to our ability to collect and control the energy from the sun. There is more energy, and more potential kinds of energy, than we could ever use.
Active Solar Energy Systems
An example of an active solar system is a solar heater for a swimming pool. The act of having a pool pump push water through a plumbing loop designed to absorb heat from the sun is what defines this as an active system. Solar energy systems that require fans, pumps or other external energy consuming equipment to operate are considered to be active systems.
Passive Solar Energy Systems
A passive solar system example, staying with the swimming pool idea, would be a pool that is made from a black liner and has shallow areas where the water gets warm. This design would be a passive solar system as the function of absorbing the suns heat is direct to the water and does not require moving parts or machinery in order to function.
Primary Solar Energies
A primary solar energy is and form of solar energy that is derived directly from the sun, the heat from the sun, or the light from the sun. The most common example of primary solar energy is photovoltaic solar cells that convert the light from the sun directly into usable electricity. Thermal energy from the sun is also an example of a primary solar energy.
Secondary Solar Energies
Secondary solar energy includes every form of energy that would not exist if it were not for the sun providing the ultimate energy source at some point in the energy transfer chain. The most common example of a secondary solar energy would be wind powered solar energies. Also biomass energy is a good example of this as the sun provides one of the foundations for life for plants which are then harvested for producing energy.
Starting with the most direct energy conversion for our convenience read more about transferring the energy from the sun directly into electricity using photovoltaic cells or PV cells
