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Solar energy is energy from the Sun. This energy drives climate and weather and supports virtually all life on Earth. Heat and light from the sun, along with solar-based resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for over 99.9 percent of the available flow of renewable energy.
Solar energy technologies harness the sun's energy for practical ends. These technologies date from the time of the early Greeks, Indian, Native Americans and Chinese, who warmed their buildings by orienting them toward the sun. Modern solar technologies provide heating, lighting, electricity and even flight.
Solar power is used synonymously with solar energy or more specifically to refer to the conversion of sunlight into electricity. This can be done either through the photovoltaic effect or by heating a transfer fluid to produce steam to run a generator.
Solar technologies range from traditional methods related to food, heat and light to large-scale electrical generation systems. Applications include:
Biomass (wood, biofuel)
Electricity generation (photovoltaics, heat engines)
Evaporation (clothes drying, desalination, food preservation)
Heat (hot water, building heat, cooking)
Lighting (daylighting, hybrid lighting, daylight saving time)
Transportation (solar car, solar plane, solar boat)   | The Complete Idiot's Guide to Solar Power for your Home  The perfect source for solar power—fully illustrated. Solar Power (photovoltaics) is now a one-billion-dollar industry, and it’s poised to grow rapidly in the near future as more pressure is placed on limited fossil fuel resources and as advances in solar technology drive down the costs of residential solar systems. This book helps readers understand the basics of solar power and other renewable energy sources, explore whether solar power makes sense for them, what their options are, and what’s involved with installing various on and off-grid systems. —Fully illustrated. —Covers every conceivable solar-power topic and concern, including updated information on the increasing number of state rebate and incentive programs
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