History Of Solar Power - article about History Of Solar Power

The History of Solar Power from Antiquity to the Present

Solar Power In the Greek and Roman Times

The history of solar power reveals that ancient Greek and Roman civilizations were familiar with the use of solar energy for different purposes. Primarily, solar heat was used for heating buildings by means of special architecture. Renowned Greek philosopher Socrates had noted that houses facing the south allowed more heat to keep the inside warm in winter. Romans started the use of glass or mica to cover the building openings facing the south. This allowed the place to retain more heat in winter. Around 100 AD, mica windows were made in Rome for holding solar heat.

Solar Power in the 19th Century

In the later half of the 18th century, the history of solar power entered its route of modern development when a Swiss scientist Horace de Saussure invented the first-ever solar collector. In 1839, the photoelectric effect was observed by a French scientist Edmond Becquerei. In 1861, Auguste Mouchout invented the world’s first steam engine powered by solar energy. However, the cost of its manufacture failed the interest of any potential manufacturers. Then in 1891 came the world’s first commercial solar water-heater from Clarence Kemp, who is regarded as the father of American solar energy in the history of solar power.

Solar Power in the 20th Century

In the first half of the 20th century, no major breakthrough came in the history of solar power technology. A solar collector with copper lids was made by William Bailley in 1908. Einstein won the Nobel Prize in 1921 for his research on photoelectric effect. The first silicon solar cell that could produce a measurable amount of electricity was invented in 1953 by scientists from the Bell Laboratories. These types of solar cells were gradually improved in the 1950s and 60s. It was in 1970s, when the international oil prices rose suddenly, that serious research was conducted in creating affordable solar panels and the history of solar power recorded amazing progress in solar technology. In the 1990s, Japanese and German scientists made great improvements in efficient solar panels. Efforts for inventing more efficient and cost-effective solar panels continue to this day.

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