Effects of Clouds on a Solar Power Home

The effects of clouds on a Solar Power Home have created a challenge that scientists must conquer if these homes are to become totally efficient. Solar Power Homes are gaining in popularity, especially with the recent (2007) emphasis on the theory of global warming. They have many advantages, but a distinct disadvantage is the effect of clouds on solar power.

Advantages of a Solar Power Home

Solar Power Homes’ advantages include, but are not limited to, the following.

* Solar power is free. A fully Solar Power Home does not incur expenses for electricity, gas, or heating oil.

* Solar power is clean. A fully Solar Power Home is cleaner inside and out than a comparable non-solar home in the same location.

* Solar power is eco-friendly. A fully Solar Power Home puts out no energy-related greenhouse emissions or pollution.

* Solar power is renewable. As the long as we have sunlight, which we must have to live, we will have solar power.

* Solar power is convenient. In isolated areas that are not near power lines, a fully solar home can still enjoy electrical power. Garden and pool lights can be powered by solar rather than electrical extensions.

* Solar power is quiet. If you enter a fully Solar Power Home, you will hear no generators or other power sources.

Effects of Clouds on Solar Power

The effects of clouds on solar power comprise the main disadvantage to a Solar Power Home. The photovoltaic cells that sit atop a Solar Power Home, or spread across its lawn, depend on sunlight for performance. Climate conditions such as clouds and fog significantly affect the amount of solar energy received and, in turn, the cells’ performance.

One effect of clouds on solar power is that they cut already reduced, usable sunlight in half. The day-night cycle is the first factor to cut usable sunlight in half. Nest, the oblique angle of the sun’s rays with respect to the ground cuts usable sunlight in half again (for most of the earth). It is at that point that clouds and atmospheric dust cut usable sunlight in half again.

In other words, the usable sunlight when one is only near-Earth, above the clouds, is about 8 times the usable sunlight available on a cloudy Earth day.

Solar Power Homes in geographical areas that have frequent cloud cover require large numbers of solar cells to collect sufficient sunlight power for anything other than very low usage. Since buildings can seldom accommodate large numbers of cells, the effect of clouds on Solar Power Homes in those areas is one of minimizing the overall use of solar power.

Nonetheless, determined people are not letting the effects of clouds on solar power deter them. Germany and Japan, for example are well ahead of the U.S.A. in installations as well as in manufacturing. Both have surged into the lead with coherent, long-term national incentive policies. Amazingly, Germany and Japan have dramatically inferior amounts of sunshine.