Solar Energy Advantages and Disadvantages

The usual modern technologies that science discovered until the present era have not been ecologically friendly. Although they may be of great convenience to us, they cause huge chunk of wastes and pollution. Solar energy is clean, safe, efficient, pollution free and saves us money. It is an excellent alternative energy source because it does not need fossil fuels to burn to generate electricity and does not emit carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide and other harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Therefore, it does not contribute to global warming, acid rain or smog. This means that our reliance on fossil fuels can be reduced in direct proportion by the amount of solar energy that we produce with every watt of power generated from the sun. For remote and locations, it is the best way to supply electricity where the costs of power installation and distribution make it impractical or impossible.

An unfortunate disadvantage of solar energy is the initial very high costs, usually due to the expensive semi-conductor materials associated with installing the system. You need a lot of space for a lot of large-scale commercially harnessing solar energy. Solar panels need a big area for installation in order to achieve utmost efficiency. Without the sun at night, solar electricity and heat are not available and may not be accessible in cases of bad weather conditions.

In the core of our solar system lies the star that holds the key of life. Though the sun is about 150 million kilometers away, it pours heat, light and energy to support life on our planet. As long as the sunlight falls on earth, solar power advantages and disadvantages will help us make the right choices on how to use the energy that will last a lifetime.