SOLAR ENERGY BENEFITS

Solar energy benefits are limitless making the environmental impact by humans on our planet nearly zero. Solar energy benefits should be examined with regard to you and your family’s quality of life for a number of reasons. I encourage you to note the following list of solar energy benefits:

• lower utility costs to you

• reliable power in an area where there is no dependable utilities available

• dependable power where emergency back-up is needed

• do your part to MAKE A DIFFERENCE in our environmental impact of burning coal or oil

• a practical project for people interested in the technology as a hobby

• creating your own electricity so that you are self-sufficient.

Since each of us purchases electricity from our local utility company it is interesting to note how solar energy benefits can impact your future. Your local utility costs will continue to rise impacted by inflation and the cost to produce the utility itself; you can actually produce your own electricity for less money with its cost actually going down in future and help with our environment as well.

Top 10 Renewable Energy Sites

Alternative Fuels & Advanced Vehicles Data Center x
This Office of Transportation Technologies site has information on the latest advances in alternative fuels, vehicles, refueling sites, and more.

The American Solar Energy Society x
ASES is a national organization dedicated to advancing the use of solar energy for the benefit of U.S. citizens and the global environment.

American Wind Energy Association x
AWEA advocates the development of wind energy as a reliable, environmentally superior energy alternative in the United States and around the world.

Florida Solar Energy Center x
FSEC is the largest and most active state-supported renewable energy and energy efficiency research, training and certification institute in the United States.

Re-Energy x
Informative and educational site that teaches about various forms of Renewable Energy and then teaches you how to build and use them.

National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium x
NAFTC fosters a clean environment for the benefit of all people through education, training and research dealing with advanced fuels and engine systems.

Renewable Energy Policy Project x
REPP supports the advancement of renewable energy technology through policy research.

Alternative Technology Association x
A non-profit community group that aims to use and promote environmentally friendly technology, including renewable energy sources such as the sun, wind and water; building with natural materials and conserving energy.

CANTEST x
Find information on alternative fuels (propane or LPG, natural gas, hydrogen, methanol, ethanol, biodiesel), hybrid electric vehicles, batteries and fuel cells.

California Energy Commission x
The California Energy Commission is the state's primary energy policy and planning agency, charged with ensuring a reliable and affordable energy supply.

A-Data Solar Disk - Solar Gadgets

Available in 128MB, 256MB, 512MB, 1GB and 2GB capacities, the A-Data Solar Disk thumb drive sports a solar powered LCD panel which displays the remaining memory capcity.

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Rising Oil Prices Vs Solar Energy

Rapidly rising oil prices have led to such a demand for solar energy that the industry could operate itself without subsidies in just a few years, according to industry leaders.

At the Munich solar industry trade fair, industry leaders were increasingly confident that grid parity - where electricity from the sun can be produced as cheaply as it can be bought from the grid - is now just a few years away.

Solar photovoltaics (PV), which convert sunlight into electrical power, have long been dismissed as too expensive and not efficient enough to make a meaningful contribution to the battle against climate change.

But costs are falling dramatically as PV production escalates as electricity prices rise rapidly year on year in line with soaring oil and gas prices.

Germany now has nearly half a million houses fitted with PV panels. The feed-in tariff pays people with solar panels above-market rates for selling power back to the grid. Governments around the world might well take notice of the German approach.

With high oil prices have boosting demand even more. The market will probably expand another 40% this year, according to the German solar industry association.

Previous predictions that grid parity would be reached in Germany in 5-7 years, now look very conservative since. Germanys predictions allowed for only a 3% rise in electricity prices each year. In many countries increases of 20% a year are becoming the norm.

The China-based Suntech, the world's biggest maker of PV panels, plans to double production this year.

They believe grid parity in Germany can be reached within 5 years. In California and Italy, where there is lots of sun and high electricity prices, they said grid parity for PV systems had already been achieved.

And the great thing about solar energy is that although you have an upfront cost, the fuel is free and is not controlled by another country.

PV costs are falling rapidly and will continue to do so as the efficiency of panels improve and installation costs drop. Moreover, the price of silicon - which can be 70% of panel costs - is also likely to fall as new production technology becomes available.

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Oil Freedom through Solar Energy

• A massive switch from coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear power plants to solar power plants could supply 69 percent of the U.S.’s electricity and 35 percent of its total energy by 2050.
• A vast area of photovoltaic cells would have to be erected in the Southwest. Excess daytime energy would be stored as compressed air in underground caverns to be tapped during nighttime hours.
• Large solar concentrator power plants would be built as well.
• A new direct-current power transmission backbone would deliver solar electricity across the country.
• But $420 billion in subsidies from 2011 to 2050 would be required to fund the infrastructure and make it cost-competitive. {That is equivalent to 1 year of military expenditures}

High prices for gasoline and home heating oil are here to stay. The U.S. is at war in the Middle East at least in part to protect its foreign oil interests. And as China, India and other nations rapidly increase their demand for fossil fuels, future fighting over energy looms large. In the meantime, power plants that burn coal, oil and natural gas, as well as vehicles everywhere, continue to pour millions of tons of pollutants and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere annually, threatening the planet.

Well-meaning scientists, engineers, economists and politicians have proposed various steps that could slightly reduce fossil-fuel use and emissions. These steps are not enough. The U.S. needs a bold plan to free itself from fossil fuels. Our analysis convinces us that a massive switch to solar power is the logical answer.

Solar energy’s potential is off the chart. The energy in sunlight striking the earth for 40 minutes is equivalent to global energy consumption for a year. The U.S. is lucky to be endowed with a vast resource; at least 250,000 square miles of land in the Southwest alone are suitable for constructing solar power plants, and that land receives more than 4,500 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) of solar radiation a year. Converting only 2.5 percent of that radiation into electricity would match the nation’s total energy consumption in 2006.

To convert the country to solar power, huge tracts of land would have to be covered with photovoltaic panels and solar heating troughs. A direct-current (DC) transmission backbone would also have to be erected to send that energy efficiently across the nation.


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Cool Ideas - Solar Energy

Global Warming is a big issue but the world currently needs oil to run. This can be chnaged if governments and people were willing to switch to alternative methods of energy production such as Solar Energy.

Whats good for the environment is good for business

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