Solar energy is provided free by the sun and comes in two forms; light and heat. Special technology is needed to capture this energy. Heat from the sun can be used to heat water in our homes and buildings and light from the sun can also produce electricity. There are two broad categories of energy from the sun:

The map above is of global energy resources from the sun. The colors show the average available energy from the sun on the Earth’s surface during 1991 to 1993. The scale is in watts per square meter. For comparison, the dark disks represent the land area required to supply the primary energy demand in the year 2011, using currently available technology.

SolaMaps is a social media solar web site with an interactive map showing home solar installations (PV and Hot Water) from around the world. Check it out an join the community to raise awareness about this obvious form of renewable energy.

Energy technologies utilising the sun have great potential to benefit the world, and new emerging processes, like Sliver Cells will ultimately help drive costs down. They can diversify energy supply, reduce dependence on fossil fuels, improve the quality of the air we breathe, offset greenhouse gas emissions, and stimulate economies by creating jobs in the manufacturing and installation of systems. Technology using the sun focussed in dish concentrators has been around for some time, although the technology is evolving and already replacing some fossil fueled power requirements.



Energy Independence

Have you thought about a DIY heating system using the sun? In many climates, a system can provide a very high percentage (50 to 75%) of domestic hot water energy. Total Solar Energy has some great tips and advice for the the do-it-yourself project. If you are in a rural environment you might also want to consider using solar water pumps.

see also SUN POWER at PESWiki.com — New Energy Technology Wiki

If you are interested in learning exactly how to generate power then this is the perfect resource for you!

With the ever increasing costs of living there is no better time then right now to start producing our own electricity. Whether you want to simply reduce your power bills or completely eliminate them – Earth4Energyhas a solution for you.

Why pay $1000’s for solar power or wind power when you can build your own professional system for less then $200!

Earth4Energy is going to teach you everything you need to know about producing your own electricity by using solar power or wind power. With our complete step-by-step setup fully illustrated manual you will be able to create your own power producing solutions in your own backyard!

Understanding and Installing Your Own Solar Electric System If you want information on solar electric systems, written in a non-technical manner that you can easily understand, this is a great book.

With all the technical jargon kept to a minimum (and when necessary, fully explained), you will have all the answers to the questions that have made you a little hesitant, in the past, to get more involved in this clean, renewable form of energy production.

You’ll learn about the various components of a system – batteries, inverters, charge controllers, photovoltaic panels, etc. and how they connect to and interact with each other to form a complete sun powered electric system.

Even if you’re not the handyman type or simply don’t have the time to do the actual installation, the knowledge gained from this ebook will allow you to figure out the size of system you need.

Once your system is up and running, this ebook will continue to serve as an easy guide to the on-going maintenance of your system.

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