Solar Energy - Use it Now!

By Evans D. Smith

Solar electricity has been around forever at least so long as we humans can tell. Solar power has been used for centuries. It dries your hair when you run out of time to employ a power blow dryer. It may fry an egg on the path on a hot summer day. It also liquefies your ice cream on the same day.

But now, solar energy has a completely new meaning, as does solar energy system. How and why has this happened? The history of solar energy is fascinating.

Coal Started This Story

When coal was being used virtually solely in the Commercial Revolution, it was actually the norm. Nobody was nervous about finding another source of fuel, though they were beginning to use biomass and ordinary fuels, and wood had been used for a very long time. The utilization of solar power was first considered in the 1860s as scientists thought that coal was becoming less available. But in the early twentieth century, coal and petrol were again typically available, and were not too dear.

During the oil embargo ( 1973 ) and the energy crisis ( 1979 ), the executive's energy policies worldwide were under perusal. There had been replenished interest in developing solar technologies. Regime developed special programs with incentives, like the Sun Program in Japan. The U. S. had the Fed Photovoltaic Function Program. Government in several states also developed research facilities ( US, Japan, and Germany were outstanding. )

To be fair, in the United States there had already been commercial solar water heaters since the 1890s. There were increasing number of users of these systems, until there were more reliable and cheaper fuels. Solar water heating was of interest during the oil crisis that happened in the 1970s but when the price of petroleum went down, so did interest in solar water heaters.

Since the 1990s, there has been increased interest in solar water heating, and now it is the most popular solar technology. There are other used of solar energy, however.

For office buildings, solar energy can offer day lighting systems and reduced need for air con.

For agriculture, solar energy can run the pumps, wine presses, and even the chick brooders.

For cooking, solar power is utilized for cooking, drying, and pasteurization. These can be of varied forms, from reflector ovens ( remember using those while camping? ), panel cookers, which use solar cells to collect heat, and box cookers. These can reach temperatures satisfactory to cook just about anything. - 31812

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