How is solar energy  used to offset regular energy like coal,oil,and gas?
116159
Solar energy (from solar panels)  converts sunlight into electricity. Solar arrays (massive groups of solar panels) can be used to produce energy on an industrial scale, but the average solar panel is still expensive and produces very little power.  However these solar arrays can be attached to the power grid like a normal power plant.  \n   Coal  fired power plants are currently the primary fuel used to produce electricity in the US.  There are also a  very few oil/gas plants used to produce power.      Solar panels can be placed on very light weight vehicles (like bikes) as a primary power source.  However since the power produced from a solar panel is pretty small,  you will never see a viable commercial solar powered SUV in the next 15 years.
195845
The cost of solar power in most locations is about .37/kwh as fossil fuel costs increase and solar power becomes more efficient it will probably be used on every corner of the Earth (figuratively speaking, I know the Earth has no corners).\n\nHere in Florida last year we had storms knock ou power to millions of households. Solar energy systems not only survived, but those homes were the only ones with power!
400645
By capturing the light and storing it.\nFor example capturing the sunlight inside the glass chambers filled with special metal foils that will get heated and then can be used later in solar energy.\nSo, that we can use that energy to heat, light, cook, and many other things.
381276
All of this are plus gas,petrol and nuclear energy. Water, wind and sun are called renewable energy resources.
711472
Solar energy is used for two types of devices: thermal, and photovoltaic.  For your water heater, you are talking thermal.  Put tubing into a black box with a clear cover, put the box in sunlight, and you have a solar water heater -- details vary, but they don't matter much.  Photovoltaic use silicon cells (usually called solar cells, or solar panels) to generate electricity.  Solar-cell powered garden lights, where the light is a light-emitting diode, are becoming popular and inexpensive.  The solar cells charge a nickel-cadmium battery during the day, and the battery powers the lamp at night.
239404
This is suppose to be common sense by now well unless you're 6 yr old then that's different. So I guess you need read this:\n\nsolar energy, any form of energy radiated by the sun, including light, radio waves, and X rays, although the term usually refers to the visible light of the sun. Solar energy is needed by green plants for the process of photosynthesis, which is the ultimate source of all food. The energy in fossil fuels (e.g., coal and oil) and other organic fuels (e.g., wood) is derived from solar energy. Difficulties with these fuels have led to the invention of devices that directly convert solar energy into usable forms of energy, such as electricity. Solar batteries, which operate on the principle that light falling on photosensitive substances causes a flow of electricity, play an important part in space satellites and, as they become more efficient, are finding increasing use on the earth (see solar cell). Thermoelectric generators convert the heat generated by solar energy directly into electricity (see thermoelectricity). Several projects have produced electricity on a large scale by using the solar energy available in desert areas. In one system, large numbers of solar batteries generate electricity for Coconut Island, off the coast of Australia. In another, oil flows through pipes that are set in reflecting parabolic troughs that can trap the heat from sunlight falling on them. The heat from the oil is then converted into electricity (see power, electric). Heat from the sun is used in air-drying a variety of materials and in producing salt by the evaporation of seawater. Solar heating systems can supply heat and hot water for domestic use; heat collected in special plates on the roof of a house is stored in rocks or water held in a large container. Such systems, however, usually require a conventional heater to supplement them. Solar stoves, which focus the sun's heat directly, are employed in regions where there is much perennial sunlight.\n\nAlso there are tons of info on this on the web just go to Yahoo search or Google and type in Solar Energy. It's not that hard.
250338
I would guess the sun would be the energy in SOLAR powered anything. Solar = sun
670720
electric can come from solar energy gas is made of oil and if people use gas powered cars earth might run out of oil and solar power can keep on going
643494
well\n\nlets take an example\n\nthe sun radiates solar energy. it is then trapped by plants and made into chemical energy through photosynthesis. and then  the plant is eaten by an animal. the energy is then converted to heat energy and lost to the environment due to movement.\n\nso, you see. energy is not created or is it destroyed but it changes state as it moves in the biosphere. this is called conservation of energy.
1019039
Rotating turbines attached to electrical generators produce most commercially available electricity. Turbines may be driven by using steam, water, wind or other fluids as an intermediate energy carrier. The most common usage is by steam in fossil fuel power plants or nuclear power plants, and by water in hydroelectric dams. Alternately, turbines can be driven directly by the combustion of natural gas or oil. Combined cycle gas turbine plants offer efficiencies of up to 60%. They generate power by burning natural gas in a gas turbine and use residual heat to generate additional electricity from steam. Wind turbines generate electricity by using the wind. Solar chimneys use wind that is artificially produced inside the chimney by heating it with sunlight. Solar parabolic troughs and solar power towers concentrate sunlight to heat a heat transfer fluid that is used to produce steam to turn a turbine. Small electricity generators are often powered by reciprocating engines burning diesel, biogas or natural gas. Diesel engines are often used for back up generation, usually at low voltages. Biogas is often combusted where it is produced, such as a landfill or wastewater treatment plant, with a reciprocating engine or a microturbine, which is a small gas turbine.
720553
There are many ways to take advantage of the energy produced by the sun.  A good place to start is with a passive solar energy water heater.  They are inexpensive to install and easy to maintain.  The simplest ones use the radiant energy of the sun and convert that to thermal energy using a material that absorbs the light instead of reflecting it, in layman's terms, something black.  \n\nPhotovoltaic (solar cell) systems convert sunlight directly into electricity. A solar or Photovoltaic cell consists of semiconducting material that absorbs the sunlight. The solar energy knocks electrons loose from their atoms in a semiconductor, allowing the electrons to flow through the material to produce electricity.\n\nFor a more in-depth explanation of photovoltaic technology try this site.
266059
Solar power both thermal and photovoltaic, hydroelectric and hydromechanical, wind electric generators and wind mill mechanical drives. Alternative fuels; Methane, methanol, ethanol,Hydrogen.\n\nYou can pick up a photovoltaic cell at radio shack cheap.
324403
There is no such thing as non-renewable energy.  Energy is simply converted from one form to another and never actually gets 'used'.\n\nThere are non-renewable SOURCES of energy however and other answerers have pointed these out.\nHydrocarbons, like coal, oil and gas are considered non-renewable because once you have converted their (stored) chemical energy in to heat energy by burning them, you will have to wait several million years before the energy is stored back in a chemical form for you to burn again.\nWind power is considered renewable since wind is a form of mechanical energy which is converted thermal energy from the sun.  We use wind turbines to control the mechanical energy of the wind and convert it into electrical energy.  The sun provides more thermal energy, which makes more wind and so the source of energy is renewed on a useful timescale.\n\nMost energy on Earth comes from the sun.  Wind is driven by the sun as I have explained.  Solar energy is obviously sun powered.  Chemical energy sources like wood, coal, gas, etc also come from the sun since plants capture the solar energy and store it in their structure as chemical energy.  This same energy is what is released by burning.\nThe most notable source of non-sun derived energy on Earth is that of the tides.  Gravitational effects between the Earth and the moon (alright, and the sun a bit) cause the tides.  Gravitational energy converted to mechanical energy.  We can use this as a renewable source as well.\n\n<flight of fancy>\nIt is theoretically possible to have so many turbines extracting energy from the wind that there isn't enough left over to keep the winds blowing, which would have rather a startling effect on regional climates.  Turn the turbnes off however and the sun would soon start things up again.\n</flight of fancy>
168594
You can store it in batteries and it lasts as long as the batteries last.\n\nThe sun produces a huge amount of energy every day (173 millions of billions Watts). The amount we receive generates wind (converted into electricity through windmills), heat, photosynthesis of plants and trees and 1.37kw of energy per square metre. This energy can be harnessed by PV cells and converted into electricity. In fact, less than 1% of our planet’s desert areas would generate all the electricity we need if it was covered with PV panels.\nGenerating electricity this way is quite simple: light hits a cell made of a thin layer of silicium over a metal support which generates electrons. The motion of these electrons generates current. PV cells are assembled in panels, generating up to 100w/h of DC power (14v approximately). These panels are connected to a regulator, which controls the electricity production, sends some to appliances, some to battery storage and dumps any excess. PV panels generate electricity when subjected to sunlight. This means they do not produce at night. This is why most systems store electricity in batteries.\n \nHOUSING APPLICATIONS\nA modern house does not require a lot of electricity and it does not seem very efficient to burn diminishing fossil resources in huge plants located far away and then transport this electricity over hundreds of kilometers to houses. By having a few PV panels on the roof, any ordinary house can generate its electrical needs; this power can be supplied in DC (for halogen lighting for example) and AC (220V) through an inverter to power standard appliances.\n \nA house connected to the grid can then sell electricity by day and buy some back at night.\nAn independent house generates all its needs by storing electricity in battery banks. In windy areas, a windmill can be a very good complement to PV systems.\n \nPV systems do not require fuel, have no moving parts that can wear, require virtually no maintenance and last for a very long time (some PV systems have a 30 years warranty).\n \nINDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS\nThey constitute the bulk of the applications today, for remote lighting, transmitters, satellites in space, etc. Industrial buildings could also produce part of their needs through PV.\n \nCOST MATTERS\nIs PV technology expensive? Prices are now going down and make it ever more competitive. PV systems last a very long time and over say 50 years, they should become extremely competitive.\nThe cost of fossil fuels is expected to increase over the next 20 years. Furthermore, fossil fuel generators require heavy maintenance. Another aspect to take in account is the pollution they generate: this has a heavy cost in terms of global warming, poor air quality, health problems and logistic costs (transport of fossil fuels, electricity on high power lines and their waste), not to mention collateral damage such as oil slicks, Chernobyl type accidents, respiratory diseases, chemical runoffs and other nasty results.
602571
The sun is not the source of ALL the energy - just almost all of it.  \n\nLight is a form of energy, most of our light is from the sun but we do recieve a tiny fraction of light from the other stars in the sky - that is why we can see them.\n\nBut the sun does supply almost all the energy.\nThe sun radiates light and other forms of energy which hits the earth and some is absorbed (some is also reflected).  Much of the absorbed light becomes heat - this is why it is hotter in the sunshine than the shade.\nSunlight also allows plants to obtain energy by a process called photosynthasis which happens in leaves and green stalks (like on a cactus).  It is this energy from sunlight which allows plants to grow.  All living things use this energy from plants via the food chain.\nFuels (like coal and oil) come from the remains of plants and animals and thus the energy was originally from the sun.\n\nThere are sources of energy which don't come from the sun such as geothermal power (this is heat from the centre of the earth which is created by pressure) and there are even organisms which live deep in the ocean which do not need any sunlight to survive (they are chemotrophic bacteria which survive around active volcanic vents in the sea floor).  \nBut to all intents and purposes a good 99% of all the energy comes from the sun.\n\nI hope this helps you with your homework!
329960
Solar energy was popular in the last oil crisis in the 70's.  But then over time, gas got cheap and cars burned leaner and then we became complacent.  Solar energy became a political thing, and it lost popularity.  \n\nSocieties do not change unless they are forced to adjust to changing economic climates.  I think people in this country will start seeking that change as heating bills stays over 600 a month and gas sells for over 5 bucks a gallon.  Then you'll see real change...
435767
most common way is not through elecrolysis, but extraction from fossil fuels:  Here is a list of the ways...notice in every case a large amount of energy is input-and in most cases this energy comes from coal burning  for electricity or oil...\nHydrogen can be produced using a variety of domestic energy resources - fossil fuels, such as coal and natural gas, with carbon capture and sequestration; renewables, such as biomass, and renewable energy technologies, including solar, wind, geothermal, and hydropower; and nuclear power. Specific technologies and processes are described below.\n\nThermochemical Processes\nSteam methane reforming: In this process, high-temperature steam is used to extract hydrogen from a methane source such as natural gas. This is the most common method of producing hydrogen; about 95 percent of the hydrogen we use today in the United States is produced using this process. \nPartial oxidation: Scientists are exploring a process that produces hydrogen by simultaneously separating oxygen from air and partially oxidizing methane. \nOther thermal processes: Other processes include (1) splitting water using heat from a solar concentrator, and (2) gasifying or burning biomass (i.e., biological material, such as plants or agricultural waste) to generate a bio-oil or gas, which is then reformed to produce hydrogen. \nElectrolytic Processes\nElectrolysis: In electrolysis, electricity is used to separate water (H2O) into hydrogen and oxygen. Current electrolysis systems are very energy intensive. The challenge is to develop low cost and more energy efficient electrolysis technologies. \nPhotolytic Processes\nPhotolytic methods: In photolysis, sunlight is used to split water. Two photolytic processes are being explored: (1) photobiological methods, in which microbes, when exposed to sunlight, split water to produce hydrogen, and (2) photoelectrolysis, in which semi-conductors, when exposed to sunlight and submersed in water, generate enough electricity to produce hydrogen by splitting the water.