Solar energy is radiant energy which is produced by the sun. Daily the sun radiates, or sends out, an incredible volume of energy. The sun radiates more energy in a second than people have used since the beginning of time! The energy of the Sun originates from within the sun itself. Like other stars, the sun is known as a big ball of gases––mostly hydrogen and helium atoms. The hydrogen atoms in the sun’s core combine to form helium and generate energy in a process called nuclear fusion.

During nuclear fusion, the sun’s extremely high pressure and temperature cause hydrogen atoms to come apart and their nuclei (the central cores of the atoms) to fuse or combine. Four hydrogen nuclei fuse to become one helium atom. However the helium atom contains less mass than the four hydrogen atoms that fused. Some matter is lost during nuclear fusion. The lost matter is emitted into space as radiant energy.

It takes an incredible number of years for the energy in the sun’s core to make its way to the solar surface, and then somewhat over eight minutes to travel the 93 million miles to earth. The solar energy travels to the earth at a speed of 186,000 miles per second, the speed of light.

Simply a small part of the energy radiated by the sun into space strikes our planet, one part in two billion. Yet this volume of energy is enormous. Each day enough energy strikes the United States to supply the nation’s energy needs for one and a half years!

Where does all this energy go?

About 15 percent of the sun’s energy which hits the earth is reflected back into space. Another 30 percent is used to evaporate water, which, lifted in to the atmosphere, produces rainfall. Solar power also is absorbed by plants, the land, and the oceans. The remaining could be employed to supply our energy needs. Who invented Solar Energy?

Folks have harnessed solar power for centuries. As early as the 7th century B.C., people used simple magnifying glasses to concentrate the light of the sun into beams so hot they’d cause wood to catch fire. More than 100 years ago in France, a scientist used heat from a solar collector to produce steam to drive a steam engine. In the beginning of this century, scientists and engineers began researching ways to use solar power in earnest. One important development was obviously a remarkably efficient solar boiler invented by Charles Greeley Abbott, an American astrophysicist, in 1936.

The solar water heater became popular at this time in Florida, California, and the Southwest. The industry started in the early 1920s and was in full swing just before World War II. This growth lasted prior to the mid-1950s when low-cost propane became the primary fuel for heating American homes.

People and world governments remained largely indifferent to the possibilities of solar technology before oil shortages of the1970s. Today, people use solar power to heat buildings and water and also to generate electricity.

How we use Solar Power today?

Solar power is used in a variety of ways, of course. There are two very basic forms of solar energy:

* Solar thermal energy collects the sun’s warmth through 1 of 2 means: in water or in an anti-freeze (glycol) mixture.

* Solar photovoltaic energy converts the sun’s radiation to usable electricity.

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About the writer – Barbara Young, our Guest contributor writes on Solar Energy in her personal hobby wesbite-12voltsolarpanels.net. Her work is centered on helping people save energy using solar powered energy to eliminate CO2 emissions and energy dependency.