Energy - Part 3: Solar

As far as straight production solar is about the purest form of energy production there is. There is no fuel, there is no waste, there is no conversion process. The sun shines and boom, electricity. It's simple and clean. Unfortunately, it only works when the sun is shining. Also, historically it has been very expensive, but the price has been dropping rapidly. Here is a graph of the cost of photo voltaic solar cells (PV) in $ per watt.



The price has dramatically dropped over the past forty years and continues to drop by double digit percentages per year. In some markets solar energy is cheaper than traditional coal and natural gas power, and as the price of solar continues to drop it will outstrip them in more and more markets.

The issue of solar down time means that it will probably be a long time before solar can be the sole power source for an energy market. However, there are more and more products for storing energy that could in time provide enough capacity for a lot of solar only applications. Big name players are getting into the market including Lockheed Martin and Tesla.

I like solar because of it's simplicity. You put up a solar array and get power. There is no refuling or waste management and you get the same efficiency with a massive solar plant as you do with one panel all else being equal. This allows for distributed power production which cuts down on transmission losses as well as providing a more robust system in the case of disasters. If I have solar panels on my roof my house will still have power even if the grid is down. And if I have an electric car I can charge my car myself. No oil infrastructure needed. In my mind a 100% electric economy powered by solar is the ideal. But that is a long way off.