What is solar power ?

Solar power is radiant energy which is produced by the sun. Daily the sun radiates, or sends out, an immense quantity of energy. The sun radiates more energy in a second than people have used since the beginning of time!

The energy of the Sun comes from within the sun itself. Like other stars, the sun is really a big ball of gases – mostly hydrogen and helium atoms.

The hydrogen atoms in the sun’s core combine to create helium and generate energy in a process called nuclear fusion.

During nuclear fusion, the sun’s extremely high pressure and temperature cause hydrogen atoms to come apart and their nuclei (the central cores of the atoms) to fuse or combine. Four hydrogen nuclei fuse to become one helium atom. But the helium atom contains less mass compared to four hydrogen atoms that fused. Some matter is lost during nuclear fusion. The lost matter is emitted into space as radiant energy.

It takes an incredible number of years for the energy in the sun’s core to make its way to the solar surface, after which somewhat over eight minutes to travel the 93 million miles to earth. The solar energy travels to the earth at a speed of 186,000 miles per second, the velocity of light.

Simply a small portion of the power radiated by the sun into space strikes our planet, one part in two billion. Yet this volume of energy is enormous. On a daily basis enough energy strikes america to provide the nation’s energy needs for one and a half years!

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