In 1973, the University of Delaware was responsible for constructing the first solar building, named “Solar One.” The system ran on a hybrid supply of solar thermal and solar PV power. In 1966, NASA launched the world’s first Orbiting Astronomical Observatory, powered by a one-kilowatt array. In 1964, NASA was responsible for launching the first Nimbus spacecraft, a satellite able to run entirely on a 470 watt solar array. Later that year the Vanguard II, Explorer III and Sputnik-3 were all launched with PV technology on board. In 1958, the Vanguard I satellite used a tiny one-watt panel to power its radios. Some of the earliest uses of solar technology were actually in outer space where solar was used to power satellites. We’ll explore some of the biggest events that have occurred in the history of solar energy: Solar panels in outer space Major events in the history of solar energy The first ever silicon solar cell could convert sunlight at four percent efficiency, less than a quarter of what modern cells are capable of. Many argue that this event marks the true invention of PV technology because it was the first instance of a solar technology that could actually power an electric device for several hours of a day. Therefore, some consider the true invention of solar panels to be tied to Daryl Chapin, Calvin Fuller, and Gerald Pearson’s creation of the silicon photovoltaic (PV) cell at Bell Labs in 1954. However, solar cells as we know them today are made with silicon, not selenium. A few years later in 1883, Charles Fritts actually produced the first solar cells made from selenium wafers – the reason some historians credit Fritts with the actual invention of solar cells. In 1873, Willoughby Smith discovered that selenium had photoconductive potential, leading to William Grylls Adams’ and Richard Evans Day’s 1876 discovery that selenium creates electricity when exposed to sunlight. This breakthrough, defined as the “photovoltaic effect,” was influential in later PV developments with the element selenium. Some people credit the invention of the solar cell to French scientist Edmond Becquerel, who determined light could increase electricity generation when two metal electrodes were placed into a conducting solution. Naturally, there is some debate around when exactly they were created and who should be credited for the invention. The development of solar panel technology was an iterative one that took a number of contributions from various scientists. Ultimately, it’s clear that even thousands of years before the era of solar panels, the concept of manipulating the power of the sun was a common practice. They also harnessed the power of the sun to produce solar-powered steamboats. In the late 1700s and 1800s, researchers and scientists had success using sunlight to power ovens for long voyages. Later in the 1200s A.D., ancestors to the Pueblo Native Americans known as the Anasazi situated themselves in south-facing abodes on cliffs to capture the sun’s warmth during cold winter months. Some of the iconic Roman bathhouses, typically those situated on the south-facing side of buildings, were sunrooms. These sunrooms used massive windows to direct sunlight into one concentrated area. These mirrors became a normalized tool referred to as “burning mirrors.” Chinese civilization documented the use of mirrors for the same purpose later in 20 A.D.Īnother early use for solar energy that is still popular today was the concept of “sunrooms” in buildings. Later, in 3rd century B.C., the Greeks and Romans were known to harness solar power with mirrors to light torches for religious ceremonies. when history tells us that humans used sunlight to light fires with magnifying glass materials. In theory, solar energy was used by humans as early as 7th century B.C. Major events in the history of solar energy.Let’s go back a few centuries to the origins of solar PV and explore the history of solar energy and silicon solar technology. With the way the cost of solar has plummeted in the past decade, it’s easy to forget that going solar had a completely different meaning even just 15 years ago. Though solar energy has found a dynamic and established role in today’s clean energy economy, there’s a long history behind photovoltaics (PV) that brought the concept of solar energy to fruition.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |