Solar energy is a vast source of power that the Sun generates naturally. The scientific and technological pursuits of harnessing solar energy in usable form are commonly referred to as solar energy production. Solar energy production has become a major focus of research and development in the twenty-first century, as dwindling fossil fuel supplies have prompted a desperate search for alternative energy sources.
For a variety of reasons, the development of advanced forms of solar energy production has gained traction. For the majority of the twentieth century, power generation was almost entirely reliant on finite resources like coal, gasoline, and oil. Despite their importance to human progress, these resources have the disadvantage of being non-sustainable and polluting. Furthermore, the oil market’s supply and demand instability has sparked a demand for more accessible, evenly distributed energy resources. Solar energy is abundant and well-distributed around the world, in addition to being inexhaustible and non-polluting. Solar energy production on a large scale, such as from power plants, is possible, but anyone with a few solar panels and a battery can set up a personal solar power plant.
Passive solar energy is the most basic form of solar energy production. The warmth of sunlight is amplified and used in place of traditional heating elements such as gas heaters or fires in passive solar technology. This type of solar energy production is exemplified by solar discs in swimming pools and passive solar housing.
Solar energy production that is active can be a lot more difficult. Two major systems for large-scale solar energy production are solar thermal concentration and photovoltaics. The use of mirrors to greatly increase the heat received from the sun is known as thermal concentration. After that, the heat can be converted into electricity and stored for later use. Photovoltaic solar energy makes use of cells made of materials that generate electricity when exposed to sunlight, such as silicon. The generated electricity can be stored in large batteries, ensuring a reliable power supply.
Solar power production on a large scale has not yet been mastered by technology in the early twenty-first century. While single-home or building systems are in use all over the world, the development of efficient large-scale solar power plants has yet to be perfected. Due to the large number of cells or thermal concentration troughs required to power a large station, early solar power plants take up a lot of space. Furthermore, when power is transferred over long distances, a significant amount of power is lost, making the process inefficient. Nonetheless, solar energy production is increasing around the world, with many countries pledging to significantly increase solar power usage over the next century.