Electricity From the Sun - How Does it Work?

The sun is the largest generator of electricity. All that needs to be done to harness this power is to capture the light that it gives off and turn it into an electrical current. Solar technology converts the sun's rays into electricity either via photovoltaic panels or by mirrors that focus sunlight. This captured energy is then used to produce electricity at a power plant or can be stored in thermal storage or batteries.

One way of generating solar electricity is to use a net meter on your home. With a net meter you can actually feed excess energy into your power grid and get credits for the energy you are using. This is done by connecting your meter to the net grid which basically means that any surplus energy you feed into the grid is stored there and when it is used it pays you a certain amount of money.

How do you get all that sunlight though? There are many ways to do this but the most effective is solar energy. We have all seen solar panels on buildings, farms and homes. These are made up of photovoltaic cells that capture sunlight and convert it into electricity. The PV cells are also known as "solar panels". The way they work is that light is absorbed by the silicon present in the cells and this produces electric current.

Now if you feed enough PV cells into the electricity grid then the generated electricity will be useful. This is how all state power grids generate their power. They have a number of backup generators in the event that the main power grid goes down. In fact the whole point behind solar energy systems is so that you don't have to rely on the regular power grid. If something happens then you can still go on with your day to day activities and your home will continue to operate. This is how solar electricity works.

If you live in an area that doesn't get a lot of sunlight then the possibility of installing solar panels may be a problem. One way around this is by using a solar power which is the most common way of providing solar electricity for homes. These systems are not big in size, but they can store enough electricity in the batteries for everyone to use. You will find that people are very enthusiastic about solar panels once they see how easy and cost effective they are.

The benefits of solar power are many. Not only do they provide the electricity you need but they are environmentally friendly. It is no longer necessary to use fossil fuels, and they are not environmentally harmful. If you install a solar power generator you won't contribute to the pollution of the earth. Once you have a solar panel system connected to your electricity mains then you won't have to pay for any extra electricity. As long as you have a regular supply of sunlight then you will never be out of money.

Photons of light are packets of energy that are made up of a little 'energy' known as photons. When solar panels catch the sunlight they soak up the photons and convert them into electricity. This is all done without the use of electricity generators. The amount of electricity that can be created from one watt of sunlight is about 1.5 volts. If you hook up as many solar panels as you can to your electricity mains then you can create enough electricity for all of your lights and appliances.

There are many advantages of using solar technologies. The main advantage is that the technology is relatively cheap. The price of silicon is constantly decreasing and it is not expensive to make a photovoltaic panel when compared to other methods of generating electricity. Solar technologies will continue to improve and become more efficient as we move into the future.