Final Essay

The Sun illuminates all parts of our planet, there is no area that does not see sunlight. It is a well-known fact that the Sun gives light and heat to our planet, but it can also give us enough energy to use in everyday life. As climate changes, population grows, and pollution increases, energy demand increases as well. The Sun is the powerful source of energy that can solve the energy crisis the “green” way. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) leads researches about renewable energy. In the article “Solar” on their official website www.energy.gov, the DOE determines their goal as to “make solar energy cost competitive with traditional sources of energy” (Para. 1). According to the article “Solar Energy Technology Basics” from August 16, 2013,

The article “Photovoltaic Technology Basics” explains, “Photovoltaic (PV) materials and devices convert sunlight into electrical energy. . . . Photovoltaics can literally be translated as light-electricity”; also, PV material was discovered by Edmond Becquerel, French physicist, in 1839, and used for the first time around 1890. However, it took more than a hundred years for scientists to fully understand the process, and now we can see PV systems around us every day: calculators, wristwatches, water pumps, traffic lights and many more (DOE, Para.1&2). At the end of the article, researchers conclude, “PV power is the least expensive form of electricity for these tasks” (Para. 4). The second popular type of device that use the Sun’s power to produce energy is concentrating solar power (CSP) technologies that “use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect solar energy and convert it to heat. This thermal energy can then be used to produce electricity via a steam turbine or heat engine that drives a generator” (DOE, “Concentrating Solar Power Basics”, Para.

3). The third type of solar energy converting device is solar radiation, or solar resource, which uses Sun’s electromagnetic radiation to produce heat and electricity; “however, the technical feasibility and economical operation of these technologies at a specific location depends on the available solar resource” (DOE, “Solar Energy Resource Basics”, Para. 1). Therefore solar radiation is less popular than first two techniques used to produce energy. The use of solar power keeps gaining popularity and more people get interested in using green energy that can not only help us keep the Earth clean and safe, but also cut utility bills (DOE, “Energy Saver Guide: Tips on Saving Money and Energy at Home”, Para. 6). Moreover, the government research program is working on the project for creating jobs in the field of the renewable energy. Government researchers in the article “System Integration” say, “The installed cost of solar photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) have fallen significantly in recent years, spurring significant growth and accelerating deployment of solar energy systems” (DOE, Para.