next up previous contents
Next: . Up: Maxwell's Equations and Light Previous: .   Contents

.














We'll decide whether or not the sun is a viable source of energy in this problem. Draw your figures above.

a) The sun produces $4\times 10^{26}$ Watts of power and is $1.5\times
10^{11}$ meters away from the earth. Estimate the energy that, on a clear day, strikes a solar panel 1 meter square in one hour when sunlight is incident on it at an angle of 45$^\circ$. Use any reasonable assumptions you like about absorption or reflection at the panel surface and by the atmosphere.

b) If one could store and recover only 1% of that energy in later use, how long could you run a 100 Watt light bulb for in the evening from an hour of sunlight during the day?


Robert G. Brown 2003-02-09