Why Isn'T Solar Energy Powering Everything?

Understanding the sun and how we can use it to produce renewable energy to meet our needs.

What you'll learn

Understand what we mean by solar energy production

Have an idea how solar energy production happens

Identify the different technologies used in producing energy from the sun

Identify the benefits and drawbacks of producing energy from the sun

Gain the knowledge to participate in informed discussions about how solar energy could and should be used

Requirements

Anyone with an interest in our futures and how we can produce and make use of clean energy will find this course useful.

Description

We’re being urged to invest our time, money and future into clean energy for our homes and businesses. Solar power is a vital part of this clean energy future.But what is solar power? How does solar power work and what are its advantages and disadvantages. This course will help you to answer these questions while explaining why it isn’t a complete solution to our current and future energy needs.Our reliance on fossil fuels to maintain our lifestyles is unsustainable. We’re using them up and they cause much of the pollution we experience. For a large part of human history, we’ve powered our lives with renewable sources of energy, and we need to return to them but using clean, modern versions. Worldwide, the heat and light from the sun is one of the most important sources of clean, renewable energy.The course is presented using a blend of talking head and animation. We illustrate our points with images and case studies. Like all life, the course begins with the sun, which provides us with all the heat and light we need. We then examine how we can use this heat and light. To do this, we explore the four main solar technologies and their advantages and disadvantages.The course ends with a summary and a response to the question, why isn’t solar energy powering everything? There’s a quiz to check the knowledge you’ve acquired and a resource document for you to download.

Overview

Section 1: Introduction

Lecture 1 Introduction

Lecture 2 The Sun

Section 2: Generating Energy from the Sun

Lecture 3 Daylighting and Passive Solar Gain

Lecture 4 Solar Thermal Energy

Lecture 5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Solar Thermal Energy

Lecture 6 Solar Photovoltaic Power Part 1

Lecture 7 Solar Photovoltaic Power Part 2

Lecture 8 Advantages of Solar Photovoltaics

Lecture 9 Disadvantages of Solar Photovoltaics

Lecture 10 Concentrating Solar Power

Section 3: Course Conclusion

Lecture 11 Summary

Learners who are curious about renewable energy and what it means.,Learners who want to understand how solar energy can contribute to a clean energy future.,Learners who want to know why solar energy is not powering everything we do.