The REAL Solar Power

If you watched Part 1 of Cog’s video, Electrify Everything, then you already know that I love our solar panels (and this solar hula flamingo). Living in the desert southwest, we really rely on our swamp cooler to cool the house. I feel so good when I turn it on, knowing that my solar panels are using the sun’s light to combat the sun’s heat right there in the living room of my humble abode. And we’re not producing any excess carbon dioxide (CO2) that heats the planet. Neither are we paying for the electricity. Our monthly electric bill ranges between $2 - $7 per month. Woo Hoo!! Makes me want to hula.

But I think the real “solar power” comes from how whole communities, governments, and industries can use solar power. “We” can take advantage of all that free energy from the sun radiating on our public spaces as well as our private abodes.

• In South Korea a 5.5-mile-long bike path is covered with solar panels. And think of all the parking structures and playgrounds that could benefit from the shade of solar panels.

• Community solar installations allow communities to make small solar installations that neighbors can buy into, without installing panels on their own roofs.

• In the future we will be able to cover our building with quantum dot solar paint or spray on peovskite solar cells. These solar paint options can be used on buildings or vehicles, enabling them to generate electricity from the sunlight falling on them.

  
  

  

  Scientists working on quantum dot solar paint. Image source: nrel.gov

Solar power isn’t a silver bullet that’s going to save the world, but it’s a great solution in places where it works. That’s why I felt so "energized" when I read about the Barefoot College and their work with Solar Mamas, who are putting up photovoltaic (PV) panels in their small villages. If you want to learn more about the Barefoot Mamas and the Barefoot College you can visit their website at https://www.barefootcollege.org/solution/solar/.  These rural communities are leapfrogging over the whole fossil fuel phase of electrifying with solar. That ought to "generate" enthusiasm in all of us, because we all benefit. And that’s real Solar Power!

Solar Mama working on a PV panel