Solar energy has an incredible future in the field of transportation. We are in its infant stage. Write an essay on the topic “Prospects of solar energy”.

Introduction => Solar energy is one of the fastest growing sources of energy in terms of electricity generation. Solar energy is produced from the sun rays received from the sun.

There are two ways in which sun's ray are used to generate power:

1. Solar thermal - Solar thermal energy is a technology for harnessing solar energy for thermal energy (heat).image below shows it.

2. Solar Power Tower - Solar power towers are huge towers erected in the middle of large reflective mirrors (called heliostats) which concentrate the solar radiation to this tower. The heat is then transferred to generate steam and produce electricity. The image below shows the solar power tower.

Global Scenario => Going by the current growth rates of the solar power source, it is being predicted that energy generated from these sources would be the biggest power source for the world in a few decades. European nations are ahead from the rest of the world in terms of the usage and production of the solar energy.

Solar Power in India => With increasing pressure from the developed country to lower the pollution levels, it has become imperative for India to look for non-polluting sources of energy like solar energy. Solar energy could emerge as one of the best options for clean energy. Many schemes are run by government to support the generation of solar power.

High Cost =>Compared to electricity from coal-fired power plants, solar is more expensive. Despite the fact that the price of Solar Photovoltaic technology has been coming down over the years it still remains economically unviable for power generation purposes. The average cost of Solar PV modules was around Rs. 2 lakhs per kW.