Solar projects are making it easier for Americans to choose solar energy to power their homes. Department of Energy Since 2008, hundreds of thousands of solar panels have popped up across the country as an increasing number of Americans choose to power their daily...
Dennis Schroeder / NREL What are solar energy soft costs and why do they matter? Soft costs are the non-hardware costs associated with going solar. These costs include permitting, financing, and installing solar, as well as the expenses solar companies incur to...
Solar Energy Technologies Office The amount of sunlight that strikes the earth’s surface in an hour and a half is enough to handle the entire world’s energy consumption for a full year. Solar technologies convert sunlight into electrical energy either...
This solar farm was built on top of a landfill located in Rehoboth, MA. The landfill had not been used for decades and will now provide clean renewable energy to customers nearby. Lucas Faria Deciding where solar projects will be installed is one of the very...
When searching the world of solar energy, it can be daunting to hear or read technical words or terminology that you might need to familiarize yourself with. We’ve made a list of the most important solar terms. Solar companies and installers commonly use these...
A growing number of farms and agricultural businesses are looking to solar to power their daily operations. Consider these questions to help you determine what’s best for you and your farm. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CO-LOCATING SOLAR AND CROP PRODUCTION? There are...
With nearly one million solar energy systems installed on residential rooftops across the country, buying or selling a solar home is getting more and more common. Just like a renovated kitchen or a finished basement increases a home’s value, solar has been shown to...
What is Community Solar? The U.S. Department of Energy defines community solar as any solar project or purchasing program, within a geographic area, in which the benefits of a solar project flow to multiple customers such as individuals, businesses, nonprofits, and...
Solar rooftop potential for the entire country is the number of rooftops that would be suitable for solar power, depending on size, shading, direction, and location. Rooftop potential is not equivalent to the economic or market potential for rooftop solar—it doesn’t...
Photovoltaic (PV) technologies – more commonly known as solar panels – generate power using devices that absorb energy from sunlight and convert it into electrical energy through semiconducting materials. These devices, known as solar cells, are then connected to form...