8 Things You Don’t Know About Solar

Whilst Solar is becoming more widespread there are still many informative and entertaining facts about the technology. Here’s our top 8 things you probably don’t know.

1. Solar is the most abundant source of power on the earth. All the energy stored in the Earth’s reserves of coal, oil, and natural gas is matched by the energy from just 20 days of Here’s another measure of just how much solar we have, 17, 000 terawatts of solar energy hits our planet continuously! To put that into perspective that’s 10,000 times the world’s required energy usage.
2. The first photovoltaic cell able to convert the sun’s energy into power for electrical appliances was made in 1954 by scientists at Bell Telephone Laboratories in the United States. The space industry was the first to use the newly invented solar technology in a meaningful way. In the 1960’s solar technology began to be used to power spacecrafts.
3. Contrary to common belief solar power does not use heat power. In fact, solar panels require sunlight which is why they are able to generate electricity in cold and cloudy climates.
4. Solar has potential to supply vast amounts of energy across the globe. The top 5 countries using solar power are 1. China (176,100 MW) United States (62,600MW) 3. Japan (56,000MW) 4. Germany (45,400MW) and India (32,900). South Africa currently has the highest solar power production in Africa with just 1,120MW.
5. Solar energy can provide electricity 24 hours a day. It does not generate any greenhouse gases. Solar energy is becoming cheaper and more accessible. For example, the cost of solar panels are 100 times cheaper today than 40 years ago. And solar panels today are 50% cheaper than a decade ago.
6. Africa is one of the sunniest places on earth as most of it sits on the earth’s equator. There is an average of 325 days of bright sunlight every year. Furthermore, 85% of the continents land receives 2,000 kilowatt-hours of solar energy per square meter per year
7. Solar Power could create major positive change in Nigeria. It would easily power the lives of 80 million Nigerians who currently have no power and replace 60 million polluting generators. In addition, widespread solar usage would save the nation $29 billion a year, which according to the International Monetary Fund is the current cost of the lack of access to reliable electricity.
8. Solar is easy to install and cheaper than other alternative sources of power such as petrol and diesel generators. In fact, most solar users can expect to make an instant 25% saving on fuel. After 24-36 months they fully own their solar home system and can enjoy a free source of power for at least 25 years.

Solar is undoubtedly a simple, clean and powerful source of energy for everyone on our planet. It is still widely untapped here in Nigeria but Solynta Energy is playing its part in creating a modern and powerful nation with the provision of affordable solar. For a free quote today please click here.