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Performing Solar Site Surveys
There are two basic questions to answer to determine if solar can work well at your location:
Does your location get enough sun?
Do nearby obstacles (trees, buildings, etc.,) at your location block too much sun?
The first question depends on how cloudy your weather is. Within the US, almost all locations get enough sun to successfully use solar energy, but some are better than others.
The path of the sun across the sky changes with the time of year. This is why its important to do this obstacle survey, and not just stick your head out the window and see what the sun is shining on today.
At the two equinoxes, the sun rises due east and sets due west. At solar noon on the equinoxes, the altitude of the sun is 90 minus the local latitude. For example, if you live in Denver with a latitude of 40 degrees, the altitude of the sun at noon on the equinoxes will be 90 - 40 = 50 deg. The length of the day on the equinox everywhere on the earth is 12 hours. The spring equinox occurs on Mar 21, and the fall equinox on Sept 21.
The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year and occurs on Dec 21 in the northern hemisphere. On this day the sun will rise well to the south of east, and will set well to the south of west. The altitude of the sun at solar noon will be 23.5 degrees less than it was on the equinox -- or, 50 -23.5 = 26.5 degrees in our Denver example. This will be the lowest that the noon sun will be in the sky all year.
The summer solstice is the longest day of the year and occurs on June 21 in the northern hemisphere. On this day the sun will rise well to the north of east, and will set well to the north of west. The altitude of the sun at solar noon will be 23.5 degrees more than it was on the equinox -- or, 50 + 23.5 = 73.5 degrees in our Denver example. This will be the highest that the noon sun will be in the sky all year.
The 23.5 degrees referred to above is the tilt of the earth axis of rotation relative to the plane of the earths orbit. The summer solstice in the northern hemisphere occurs when the north pole is tilted toward the sun, and the winter solstice when the north pole is tilted away from the sun.
In planning a solar collector location, it is important to make sure that the sun will shine on the collector during all the parts of the year that you want it to. That's what the following site survey will tell you.
Does your location get enough sun?
Do nearby obstacles (trees, buildings, etc.,) at your location block too much sun?
The first question depends on how cloudy your weather is. Within the US, almost all locations get enough sun to successfully use solar energy, but some are better than others.
The path of the sun across the sky changes with the time of year. This is why its important to do this obstacle survey, and not just stick your head out the window and see what the sun is shining on today.
At the two equinoxes, the sun rises due east and sets due west. At solar noon on the equinoxes, the altitude of the sun is 90 minus the local latitude. For example, if you live in Denver with a latitude of 40 degrees, the altitude of the sun at noon on the equinoxes will be 90 - 40 = 50 deg. The length of the day on the equinox everywhere on the earth is 12 hours. The spring equinox occurs on Mar 21, and the fall equinox on Sept 21.
The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year and occurs on Dec 21 in the northern hemisphere. On this day the sun will rise well to the south of east, and will set well to the south of west. The altitude of the sun at solar noon will be 23.5 degrees less than it was on the equinox -- or, 50 -23.5 = 26.5 degrees in our Denver example. This will be the lowest that the noon sun will be in the sky all year.
The summer solstice is the longest day of the year and occurs on June 21 in the northern hemisphere. On this day the sun will rise well to the north of east, and will set well to the north of west. The altitude of the sun at solar noon will be 23.5 degrees more than it was on the equinox -- or, 50 + 23.5 = 73.5 degrees in our Denver example. This will be the highest that the noon sun will be in the sky all year.
The 23.5 degrees referred to above is the tilt of the earth axis of rotation relative to the plane of the earths orbit. The summer solstice in the northern hemisphere occurs when the north pole is tilted toward the sun, and the winter solstice when the north pole is tilted away from the sun.
In planning a solar collector location, it is important to make sure that the sun will shine on the collector during all the parts of the year that you want it to. That's what the following site survey will tell you.
Phone: (413)-36-SOLAR