Solar Facts
INTERESTING INFORMATION & REFERENCES
In a single hour, the amount of power from the sun that strikes the Earth is more than the entire world consumes in a year.
The Earth receives approximately 173,000 terawatt-hours (TWh) of solar energy annually. In contrast, global energy consumption is about 23,000 TWh per year. This means that in just one hour, the sun delivers more energy to Earth than the world consumes in an entire year.
A single year of sunshine exceeds all known energy reserves of oil, coal, natural gas and uranium combined.
The total solar energy on Earth annually far surpasses the recoverable energy in known fossil fuel and uranium reserves. For instance, the combined proven reserves of coal, oil and natural gas are estimated to be around 65,000 exajoules (EJ), whereas the Earth receives about 3,850,000 EJ of solar energy each year.
SOURCE - ScienceDirect – A Fundamental Look at Supply Side Energy Reserves
If we could capture just 1% of the solar energy hitting Earth, it would be enough to power civilisation 10 times over.
The Earth receives approximately 173,000 terawatt-hours (TWh) of solar energy annually. In contrast, global energy consumption is about 23,000 TWh per year. This means that capturing just 1% of the solar energy hitting Earth would provide more than 17 times the energy needed to power civilisation.
Just 0.3% of the world’s land area covered in solar panels could supply all global electricity needs.
Research indicates that covering approximately 0.3% of the Earth's land area with solar panels could meet the world's electricity demand. This calculation is based on the assumption of an average annual solar energy generation of 1,370 kWh per installed kilowatt, requiring about 38 million hectares of land.
SOURCE - Clean Energy Council – Rooftop Solar Shines Bright as Australia Surpasses Four Million Installations
Solar energy is the most abundant energy resource on Earth.
Solar radiation provides a continuous flux of energy at the top of Earth’s atmosphere of about 1,361 W/m² (the solar constant). Even after atmospheric absorption and reflection, the energy reaching Earth’s surface exceeds all other primary energy sources by orders of magnitude. Its near-constant availability and global distribution make it our planet’s dominant renewable energy resource.
SOURCE - NASA Earth Observatory - Climate and Earth’s Energy Budget
Australia leads the world in rooftop solar uptake. Around 1 in 3 Australian homes has solar panels, the highest rate globally.
Australia leads the world in rooftop solar adoption, with around one in three homes now fitted with panels. That’s more than four million systems nationwide, and in states like Queensland and South Australia, uptake is closer to half of all houses. This puts Australia well ahead of other solar leaders such as Germany and Japan, making it the global frontrunner in household solar energy.
SOURCE - Australian Government - Australia hits rooftop solar milestone
International Energy Agency (IEA PVPS) - National Survey Report of PV Power Applications in Australia
Green Review - Australia leads the world in solar PV per capita