Solar power has come a long way in the last thirty years. Those of us that researched in the past found that it was incredibly costly (at that time) and the solar collecting units were large and bulky. Technology may have advanced significantly, but there are some up sides (and down sides) that need to be considered when you are thinking about making the transition to solar power.

The first thing you have to realize is that the U.S. Government collects a lot of money in taxing power, in general. The costs of power are going to continue to increase and therefore many are looking to alternative power sources. Location is the first thing you have to think about. Solar power only generates during the day so if you live in an area that has low sunlight, you may want to have a specialist do an analysis to see if you will get sufficient sunlight. While the sun states might seem like a no-brainer, consider the direction your home or business is facing and if you have trees. If the direction works out but the trees do not, you will have to incur the cost of having the trees removed as well as the change to your home or business esthetics.

One of our neighbors decided to first do solar for their smaller home only for heating their swimming pool. They had to remove four large pine trees. That added an additional cost of $2,000 to the already higher cost of the solar installation. There home previously had a warm and quaint appearance due to the trees and now it stands out in the bright sun, looking rather barren.

You may have heard about all kinds of rebates and incentives for solar power. The government had fairly decent programs in the 80’s. Current incentives rate around 30% from the Government, but local programs are county-specific. I looked up the incentive for my particular county and it only listed a small dollar incentive ($200) if I included a solar water heater. If you have to invest thirty thousand dollars into a solar system, get a 30% tax incentive, you are still looking at $21,000 investment. The overall average cost (before any rebates or tax incentives) is configured to be about $10 to $12 per watt.

Your roof is another thing to take a very good look at. If you are thinking about having your roof re-done (or need to have it done) you will have the added expense of having the solar panels removed and replaced with the new addition and you will not be able to use the solar panel efficiency while they are down.

The cost of maintaining and keeping your solar system clean is another area to review. Whether you hire a company or are a do-it-yourselfer, it will cost something. In my case, we are surrounded by pine trees and even though the trees are far away, the pine needles are many. This would mean we would have to be on our roof or pay someone else once a month to keep the area cleaned up.

The positive sides of solar energy are pretty obvious. You can do the math to figure out how long it would take your solar system to pay for itself. Using our $21,000 number above and estimating a higher electric bill of $200 per month, it would take you 105 months to break even. That’s almost nine years. If your area is set up for the return grid credit abilities, remember that you are also collecting a lot of solar power and returning it as a credit into a grid. You will have to check your individual area and your power company to see what that amount might be, but it isn’t as nice as it sounds. Power companies are in business to make money, not pay it out.

Solar power remains one of the best choices for both homes and business in today’s society, but with a slowly improving economy, the financing options are getting slimmer. Very few people have $21,000 cash lying around and finance companies are making it more difficult to borrow money. So, your hopes and dreams of adding solar power to your home may come crashing down.

Solar technology is an area of research that has a high focus. There are many new developments that are being tested that are lighter weight and offer a more sturdy construction. The newer collectors being tested also collect a higher volume of energy in a shorter amount of time.

Solar power is better for the environment all around. But, before you make the jump you will want to examine all aspects for a fit for you.

3 – Solar panels to see the brighter side
The US Department of Energy aims to reduce the cost of solar photovoltaics to $1 per watt by the end of the decade, which would mean that solar panels are finally 100 percent competitive with other energy sources in the absence of subsidies.

4 – Smart windows to cut the AC bill
US e-Chromic, based in Colorado, is developing so called sun-smart windows that automatically change from transparent to reflective on hot days, thus dramatically reducing energy consumed on cooling.

5 – The power of the Sahara

The DESERTEC Foundation, which is being led by major banks such as Munich Re and Deutsche Bank aims to tap into the enormous solar energy potential of the Sahara. Just a small portion of the Sahara could meet all of Europe’s and Africa’s energy needs. Politics are the main barrier, but if this can be overcome, the potential is unlimited.

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Alternative energy projects around the globe are not only dealing with all the technological, feasibility and economic factors, but also with the negative pressures from the all-powerful oil companies who are in no rush at all to see sustainable energy sources succeed. The bad news is that the oil companies really do have a stranglehold on the industry in many countries, but the better news is that in certain parts of the world the green movement has sufficient momentum for alternative energy projects to be an important part of national policy. Germany and Spain, for instance, are the two big powerhouses when it comes to solar energy projects. Solar photovoltaics have dropped dramatically in price over the last few years, and have government subsidies in these countries have made them even more affordable. The advancement in energy storage research has led to molten salt technology, which makes it possible to store the sun’s energy for use at night. The power of the sun really could replace coal, oil and gas in the next couple of generations, and here are five of the current most prospective sun energy projects which the oil companies truly want to fail!

1 – When sun meets water

Sun Catalytix is researching into applying the sun’s energy to split water into oxygen and hydrogen gas, which can then be stored and used as fuel. With this technology, just 4 gallons of water recombined would have enough energy to meet the daily energy requirements of a large US home.

2 – Liquid fuel from the sun
Joule Unlimited is continuing to develop its “Liquid Fuel from the Sun,” a title which it has trademarked. It has just acquired 1100 acres of land in New Mexico where it will construct a pilot facility which will produce renewable ethanol fuels from the power of the sun!

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Many of us have the right intentions when it comes to reducing our impact in the environment, but are all of them well placed?

1 – Eating local foods.

We’ve all heard of this way to help the environment: eat foods grown locally instead of imported ones, and you will not be contributing to the emissions resulting from the transportation of these foods. The truth is though, 90 percent or more of the emissions related to food come from production, and only a small percentage from transportation. So, if the foods you buy are not grown or produced efficiently to begin with, it doesn’t matter if you buy them or not – they have already been produced. That said, if locally produced food is produced effeciently, then it is better than the equivalent imported food.

2 – Solar panels.

If you ask anyone how you can help the environment, a very likely answer you will get is solar panels. But what people don’t know is that solar panels may not be the solution to end the world’s dependency on oil. The main problem with solar panels is that while they may work to save energy costs and using petroleum-based products once they have been built, the process of making them requires an astronomical amount of energy, not to mention the necessary chemical for their production. In a recent study it was shown that to manufacture one square meter of a solar panel would emit 75 to over 300 kg of carbon dioxide. The installation would then require another 600 to over 3,000 kg of carbon dioxide emissions! All this begs the question whether solar panels are really the answer to the future of energy.

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If you’ve been wondering what countries use solar energy, here is a comprehensive list of the greenest ten of them all.

1. Germany (9,785 MW) – Ironically, Germany is not a very sunny place, and yet it has managed to become a world leader in countries using solar energy. About half of the total solar electricity produced in the whole world comes from Germany alone! Praise be to Germany’s very green leanings.

2. Spain (3,386 MW) – In 2007, a bylaw made solar panels compulsory for all buildings that are built or renovated in Spain. Non-residential buildings that are new, like hospitals or shopping centers, are required to use solar panels for generating a certain portion of electricity they use.

3. Japan (2,633 MW) – Next on our list of what countries use solar energy is Japan, and it is doing everything it can to become the new leader in solar energy use, with the support of the private sector and local authorities. In 2009, about $9 billion was invested in Japan’s solar energy field, and a plan was announced to install solar panels in the country’s 32,000 public schools.

4. United States (1,650 MW) – National legislation is due to move the United States forward in countries using solar energy, and in the coming years the country’s total installed capacity is expected to grow. In 2009 the federal solar tax credit cap was eliminated, which promotes the solar energy industry growth. (To read about Obama’s big plans for solar energy, click here).

5. Italy (1,167 MW) – Like the other countries, solar energy here is big, and Italy has a lot of sunshine going for it. Italy experienced the second-largest increase in solar energy use on earth in 2009.

6. Czech Republic (465 MW) – In 2009, with the exception of Germany, Czech Republic installed more new solar power per capita than any other country in the world, so the country’s solar energy industry is booming.

7. Belgium (363 MW) – Belgium offers many tax rebates and “a well-designed Green Certificates scheme” for solar power use. However, it is not projected to do as well in 2011, since a tariff decrease is predicted.

8. China (305 MW) – China has many projects under consideration, and the implementation of these projects will push the country closer to the top of this list. However, the plans are still quite vague as to when this will happen. As of now, however, the energy output from solar power is still quite high. (To get some solar energy investing tips, click here).

9. France (272 MW) – Although France is one of the top countries using solar energy, there is concern that a large number of megawatts of solar energy installed has not been connected to the grid. This issue must be resolved.

10. India (120 MW) – India’s demand for electricity is growing rapidly, much like China’s, and it is also quite a sunny place. India’s government has been confirming its stance on clean energy by setting a goal to reach 20 GW by the year 2020.

For more information on solar energy, go to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_energy
http://www.solarenergy.org/

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the renewable energy source of solar power should be able to provide a majority of global electricity by 2060.  Their previous predictions have been revised. In 2011, the IEA indicated that 11% of the total power is predicted to be from home and office solar panels, and a further 11% will come from central solar power stations that will provide clean electricity for populous regions. A direct-current power transmission backbone would provide solar power to the whole country.  The IEA is now indicated that they have a more aggressive prediction of solar power production for a majority of the world by the year 2031. 

According to the IEA, currently solar power accounts for only 0.5% of total electricity production, but this number needs to increase if carbon emission reduction is to be realized. Nobuo Tanaka, the IEA Executive Director, stated that the combination of concentrating solar power and solar photovoltaics will considerably enhance energy security and reduce CO2 emissions by almost 6 billion tonnes per year by 2060. The prospective success of solar power stations, also called Concentrating Solar Power or CSP, largely depends on the development of “dedicated transport lines”. The IEA forecasts that by 2031 solar power plants will be able to compete with coal and nuclear power stations. The IEA also predicts that North America will be the largest CSP producer, followed by North Africa and India, which will most likely provide half of its output to Europe.
The IEA says that with the right policies solar panels on commercial and residential buildings in many regions could compete with traditional electricity output by 2020. The IEA also predicts that by 2031 solar panels will supply a majority of the world’s electricity. Tanaka wants predictable long-term oriented solar-specific incentives so that this technology can become competitive. The director of the Center for Renewable Energy Systems Technology at the Loughborough University in the UK, Professor Philip Eames, claims that solar power is a feasible alternative to fossil fuels. According to him, if the current trends are taken into consideration, there will be quite a massive growth in solar panels and CSP, if everything keeps going the same way. Eames says that solar panel prices decreased significantly over the past year and will continue to fall, as this technology continues to develop and CSP maintenance costs become relatively low.

The Solar Trade Association CEO, David Matthews, said that solar PV and CSP could easily complement each other instead of competing with each other. It’s important to understand that we need both CSP and PV: CSP in southern places, which get lots of sunshine, and PV in northern Europe. In the projected future, Matthews said that he predicts that CSP will play a more significant role in meeting the global power needs, since it has lower costs per kilowatt, and it is able to store energy overnight, and even transfer it over long distances.

Great news for the solar energy industry in the US this week as Obama announced his new initiative in his weekly address, saying that the government is going to shell out nearly $2 billion for new solar power plants in the US as part of the Recovery Act. Obama said that this will create thousands of jobs and significantly increase the use of renewable energy sources in the US.
Clearly Obama is looking into the future for potential growth industries in a bid to make sure that such industries and their jobs take root within the US. The solar energy industry has one of the highest growth potentials in the medium term amongst all types of renewable energy sources.

“We will carry on competing aggressively to be sure that the industries of the future and jobs take root in America,” Obama said. He continued by saying that “after years of watching companies build and create jobs overseas, it’s great news that we’ve attracted a company to our nation that will build a plant and create jobs right here.”

The US government effectively guaranteed loans to two solar energy two companies. The first is Abengoa Solar, which is going to build one of the world’s biggest solar plants in Arizona, and in doing so will create more than 1,600 jobs in the construction industry. The plant will eventually generate enough energy to power 70,000 homes. The second is the solar panel manufacturer by Abound Solar Manufacturing, which is located in Colorado and Indiana, and which will create over 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 jobs thereafter.

Obama has a long term strategy to confront the nation’s two major energy challenges: its dependence on foreign oil and global climate change. Obama’s comprehensive plan to combat global warming and energy security, which was released in autumn 2007, will:

• Implement programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to the recommended level given by top scientists.
• Develop green energy supplies by investing $150 billion over the next decade, and in doing so create millions of new jobs.
• Significantly improve the energy efficiency our economy by 50% by 2030.
• Lower our dependence on foreign oil and reduce our overall oil consumption by 35% or more, which equates to 10 million barrels of oil, by 2030
• Take the lead in an international global warming partnership with the target of making the U.S. a leader in the global battle against climate change.

Though solar energy companies, and other renewable energy companies have seen their stocks fall this year, with the government giving the solar energy sector particular priority, some investors are investigating the best ways to enter into this sector. To find out more about alternative energy stocks go to: blogs.forbes.com

More information about the background of Obama’s energy program can be found here.

A significant technological leap is being made in the solar panels industry. For the first time ever, an experimental aircraft that generates its own power through solar energy panels is making a round-the-clock test flight.

The plane has 12,000 solar panels, and this is the latest move of the Solar Impulse project, which is lead by Mr.Borschberg and his business partner Bertrand Piccard.

The pair aims to prove that solar energy and aviation can go hand in hand in the future, and can also generate power for society at large.
The main goal of the experiment is to find out whether the plane can fly in darkness, using solar energy panels that completely cover its wings, and which generate enough power to keep the plane in the air for 24 hours.

The HB-SIA plane weighs the same of a family car but its wingspan is that of a big airliner.

“For seven years now, the whole team has been passionately working to achieve this first decisive step of the project,” said Andre Borschberg, the plan’s pilot.

The pilot will fly the plane to an altitude of 27,900ft on the night of July 7th 2010, when the sun’s rays cease being strong enough to supply the solar panels with sufficient energy.

The prototype plane will then start a gradual descent using energy that is stored in its batteries until sunrise.
The team said that the big question that they want to answer is whether the pilot can make use of the battery energy efficiently enough to fly throughout the entire night.

“If this mission ends up being a success, not only will it be the longest but also the highest flight ever made by a solar plane.”
The plane is highly advanced. It incorporates composite materials to keep it super light, and uses super-efficient solar panels, batteries and motors to keep itself in the sky for longer than any other solar paneled plane has achieved.

The plane was unveiled last year and since then it has been undergoing daytime trials. The first full daytime flight was completed successfully on 7 April.

The group has many plans for the future. Their goal is to make the first manned transatlantic solar flight in two years time, and in 2013 they want to complete the first full circumnavigation of the Earth.

Whilst we can safely say that your next transatlantic flight will not be powered by solar energy panels, the technology is being developed step by step and it is surely only a matter of time before it reaches the level of advancement required to be considered for commercial use. Currently, Mr.Borschberg and his business partner Bertrand Piccard are pioneers in this field.

Many of us have been doing any research and are trying to go green by adding solar energy to either home and or office. This may be your first venture into the solar energy topic or like me, you may have been investigating it as a viable alternative for over twenty five years. While much has changed in the last few decades, there are some solar energy cons that you must take into consideration.

Price:
Twenty five years ago it was going to cost almost $10,000 to add solar energy to our little 865 square foot cottage home in Southern California. We not only couldn’t afford it at that time, but, we would have had to have the entire internal electrical infrastructure overhauled. Prices have indeed come down since that time, but the cost is still a major hurtle to overcome. The average cost of a single solar cell is around one thousand dollars. Depending upon the size of your home or office, you will need multiple solar cells. Our neighbors recently installed solar heating for their swimming pool only and needed two solar cells. If you are trying to do a comparison of the tax credit that might be available, do your homework. There are regulations and guidelines that must be adhered to for acceptance by the IRS.

Day Work Only:
Solar cells are collecting the solar energy only during the daylight hours. This equates to fifty percent functionality and energy generation. During the night time, the solar cells cannot access the light needed to function. Some have suggested that in order to compensate, you will have to double the amount of solar cells needed for the square footage of your home or business. This will increase the base cost considerably. There are some alternatives that involve investing in an energy storage unit. This again, involves a higher dollar investment.

Stormy Weather = no solar energy
If you live in a mostly sunny state, you are one of the lucky people. However, a majority of the population has a lack of consistently sunny weather. Bad weather, of any sort, can affect the efficiency of the solar cells lowering the daily energy that can be collected.

Pollution:
Anyone that lives or does business in a city environment must understand that pollution can affect the solar cells ability to collect and convert energy.

Space:
Solar cells take up a lot of space. The more solar cells that you need, the more your home or office has a roof that appears to BE a solar cell. In addition, if your rooftop is not at the best angle, the efficiency of the solar collection will be lowered.

Trees:
Solar energy collection needs as much direct contact with the sunlight as possible. If you love your trees, you may be horrified to know that some of them may have to be trimmed back or taken down entirely.

Roof Condition:
Besides just the pitch and angle of the roof, you must also take into consideration the overall roof condition. If you are in need of a new roof, it may not be in good enough condition to add the solar cell panels.

Overall, the solar energy cons do not outweigh the pros; but you do need to take everything into consideration before you make the investment.

Quite a few European countries always seem to be ahead of the curve when it comes to instituting new ideas and technology. From Ireland’s PlasTax that adds twenty cents for each plastic bag used at the checkout to Norway’s electronic highway toll collection, Europe has been in the innovation lead for the best green approaches. This is never truer than using solar powered trees for efficient lighting.

Solar powered trees have been in the test mode for the last number of years. They come in a variety of different types, depending upon the manufacturer and the desired outcome of design. In essence, they are solar cells that are placed at the ends of branch like arms and assembled to appear in a tree like formation. This is a wonderful attempt at not only addressing the topic of renewable energy, but changing a boring technology into something that has a more organic appearance. Artistic creativity can offer all kinds of branch placement, so that they can be bundled together and end in an upward spray or emulate a closer resemblance to an actual tree. The solar cells themselves can be in an array of shapes, depending upon the final look that needs to be achieved: circular, triangular or other geometric shapes. Various colors, tones and light shading are also being used to enhance the visual effect. The day of the old fashioned street light is making way for a plethora of artistically designed solar powered trees.

The purpose of solar powered trees is to replace the standard and expensive street lights in communities, shopping centers and walk areas. Previous attempts at the renewable energy resource of solar trees lacked in the ability to sufficiently light up an area in a continuing manner when the weather was not bright and sunny. This problem has been overcome, with the solar trees ability to maintain lighting well enough for as long as four days when continuous sun was not available.

U.S. companies that have a renewable energy vision are following suit fairly fast. Many of the groves of solar trees are being planted in corporate parking lots, mall areas and cityscapes. As you might have guessed, California usually follows Europe in technology innovation, so many of the solar powered groves are now part of the California company infrastructure. One of the best uses of solar trees is in the park and ride lot in Vacaville, California. Hybrid car owners can drive their car up to the solar trees, plug them into the chargers and proceed with their ride to work or an event. This encompasses two arenas of renewable energy using the hybrid vehicle and the solar charge process.

There are websites and not for profit organizations that are put in place to help education as well as inviting new design ideas. This empowers the private citizen to get involved in a bit of the creativity and we therefore own the project more. Do not be surprised if the solar trees begin turning up in school parking lots with a creative signature of one of the students!