Solar energy and its use have a long history. Early man used the sun to warm himself. The ancient Greeks built homes with large south facing windows to harness the light and warmth of the sun, especially in winter. This idea is now know as passive heating. The ancient Romans added glass of mica fronts to the south side of their homes to help retain the heat better.

The Romans were also the first to use glasshouses to grow a variety of plants that needed more warmth.

All of us at some point in our lives have burnt carbon paper using a magnifying glass to focus the heat of the sun’s rays and create fire. These are just some early examples of the use of the sun’s heat to improve our human lives.

All the ancient people have been fascinated by the sun and recognized its role as energy giver and life giver. In many ways the sun’s energy has always been used by people. Even fossil fuels are stored solar energy in one sense.

However, when one talks of solar energy in modern times one is talking about a particular form of actively converting solar heat into energy to power everyday activities. This generation of electricity is what is commonly referred to as solar power.

People

In the modern era, Edmund Becquerel, in 1838, observed and published his findings about the nature of materials that turn light into energy. Then Auguste Mouchout patented a design for a motor running on solar energy. This machine turned solar power into mechanical steam power and operated a steam engine. He also used the steam engine to make a refrigerating device and made ice from the sun’s heat. Later, Willoughby Smith tested the use of selenium solar cells. He had discovered their sensitivity to light.

Next comes William Adam who designed a 2.5 horse power steam engine using mirrors. His Power Tower concept is still in use today. Charles Tellier installed the first solar energy system on a rooftop for heating household water supplies.

The Companies

Aubrey Eneas formed a solar energy company – the first of its kind – and sold a couple of solar energy systems as well. However, these systems could not withstand a windstorm and were destroyed. Then Henry Willsie decided to store power for night time use. He built two large plants in California. However, he was not able to sell his idea and his company too failed. Later, Frank Shuman’s company built a large and cost-effective solar energy system that generated a lot of steam but did not produce enough pressure.

The use of silicon as a semi conductor was discovered by scientists working at Bell Laboratories. This later led to the construction of a solar panel. In 1956, the first commercial solar cell was being used by the public. Costing a whopping $300 per watt, they were used to power radios and toys.

Space programs too helped in the progress of using solar energy. The Vanguard I was the first satellite to use solar energy to generate electricity.

Political crises such as the OPEC oil embargo also propelled the use of solar energy. By now the price of a solar cell had dropped to $20 per watt.

Luz Co. a Los Angeles based company produced solar energy. However, they were forced to shut shop by investors who did not see a future for this kind of energy.

Nowadays, almost all governments are subsidizing solar energy generation. There are a lot of laws in place to help companies and home owners generate solar power. However, one should always remember that all this would not have been possible without the pioneering spirit of the scientists and investors who went ahead and harnessed the sun’s energy for use by human kind.

More people now perceive solar energy as a clean and renewable form of electricity. The technology too has become cheaper and more easy to use. Screen printed solar cells are in the offing and will soon drive the prices of solar energy downward. Another idea is that of roofing shingles that turn the sun’s rays into electricity to power the home. New homes are expected to be built with these shingles. If a home does not have roof space solar panels are now being mounted to the sides of the house. Pools are being heated using solar energy at very low costs as well.

As more people adopt the use of solar energy, the economies of scale are bring down the cost of manufacture of solar panels. Nowadays, in the United States, there are do it yourself kits that you can use to make your own solar panels. These are less expensive than commercially available solar panels.

Most countries – both developed and developing – are subsidizing the use of solar panels and solar technology. This too helps in the spread of the use of the technology to power homes and offices.

In future, solar energy can be expected to power most homes and offices. This is the way forward, given the rising costs of oil and the growing concern over climate change.

Solar energy – the idea of harnessing the sun’s free energy and use it to benefit human kind is as old as mankind. However, with the improvement in technology and science there has been a better understanding of how to do this more efficiently. The pressures of climate change and rising oil prices have also spurred interest in this field.

Now, it makes sense to use solar energy to power an entire home. In future cars and other forms of transportation too are likely to use solar energy to do their work. Tropical countries are likely to use these new technologies widely as they have more days of fierce sunshine.

To sum up, solar energy is an idea whose time has come. The days and years ahead will see a lowering of prices of solar cells, more efficient technology to harness the sun’s heat, and greater interest in this technology.