The sun is full of energy and solar energy comes from sunlight that reaches earth. The amount of sunlight that reaches earth varies depending on location, time of day, time of year, and weather conditions.
Solar energy has been used by people for hundreds of years to cook food, keep warm, and to dry clothes. Today, it is also used to create electricity!
Solar cells turn light from the sun into electricity. Solar cells are also called photovoltaic cells. ‘Photo’ is Latin for light and ‘voltaic’ means electricity.
Solar cells are put together to make solar panels, sometimes called a “solar array.” Solar panels are put on your home’s roof to collect sunlight and turn it into power. If you have seen big shiny panels on the roof of a house, that house is using solar energy! Solar energy can be used to power anything in your house that needs electricity.
Solar Panels are not just for houses. In fact, solar panels are used all around us to power many different things. Solar panels can be put on food trucks, cars, boats, buildings and space satellites. There are even planes that run on solar power!
Solar panels can also be used to power smaller things such as calculators and the orange flashing highway signs that warn us about a traffic jam or a closed exit.
