From The Workbench - Alternative + Renewable Energy Blog Valuable information for do-it-yourselfers interested in the latest in alternative + renewable energy

It’s been awhile since we went into the technical aspects of solar power, and I Just so happened to stumble upon a pretty great article from the folks at Scientific American that is all about exactly how solar power really works.  It’s a question that baffles a lot of people new to alternative energy, how does simple sunshine get stored, converted and put to use as electricty?  How is it even possible?

Turns out it is, and it is not at all simple.  The idea is simple, but the actual mechanics of making it work are fairly complicated.  From the design, to the production, to the installation, to the conversion and finally to the actual use, solar power is an impressive display of human ingeninuity and learning how it works is a great way to get your feet wet in new, green, technology.  Here, in this sentence, is the most simple way solar power can be summed up:  “The sun’s light (and all light) contains energy. Usually, when light hits an object the energy turns into heat, like the warmth you feel while sitting in the sun. But when light hits certain materials the energy turns into an electrical current instead, which we can then harness for power.”

Older technology to harness that power used large crystals made of silicon that would produce an electrical current when struck by light; new technology, however, uses much smaller, much more flexible materials for the crystals, like copper-indium-gallium-selenide, so the actual solar panels themselves can be shaped and reshaped in finer ways.  The only drawback to this new tech, however, is the copper-indium-gallium-selenide crystals are not as productive or efficient at turning light into useable energy as silicon.

The bottom line is, if you need a refresher course on just how solar power works, this article is pretty informative, and easy to understand.  Of course you can always just go to Northern Tool’s own Solar Power Buyer’s Guide.  It’s just as packed with information and will actually show you what you need to buy to make it work for you!