How is solar energy used? The main function of a solar panel is to convert energy from the sun into electricity. These electricity producing panels are sometimes called photovoltaic system. However, did you know that you can also use the solar energy to generate hot water for your home? These solar panels are also known as thermal solar systems.

There’s a lot of information out there about the benefits of solar energy but where did solar powered technology originate from? It was in 1838 that Edmund Becquere discovered that the sun could be used as an energy source.
Around 30 years later, between 1860 and 1881, Auguste Mouchout was the first man to patent a design for a motor running on solar energy. He invented a machine that would convert solar energy into mechanical steam power. This invention was a breakthrough for the future of the solar panel. While Mouchout was inventing, William Adams was writing the first book about solar energy. Then in 1883, the biggest solar powered break was made when Charles Fritz invented how to get electricity out of solar energy.

Over the following 65 years, many scientists tried to improve solar powered technology and have done so with great success. The first commercial solar panel went on the market in 1956. It was really expensive and would cost you around $300 per watt. In these days solar energy was mostly used for toys and radios. In 1970 there was a huge energy crisis and people became aware that it was becoming more and more necessary to look for alternative energy sources. As solar panel technology improved, prices got cheaper – down to only $20 per watt. This was a huge step for the green energy industry

These days, solar panels are a part of many peoples’ lives. The Australian government is increasingly supporting greener energy and actively promoting it to create a more sustainable environment. After approximately 170 years of inventing we are at a new era: The era of green energy for everybody.