Why isn't solar energy powering everything?

We’re being urged to invest our time, money and future into clean energy for our homes and businesses. Solar power is a vital part of this clean energy future.

But what is solar power? How does solar power work and what are its advantages and disadvantages. This course will help you to answer these questions while explaining why it isn’t a complete solution to our current and future energy needs.

Our reliance on fossil fuels to maintain our lifestyles is unsustainable. We’re using them up and they cause much of the pollution we experience. For a large part of human history, we’ve powered our lives with renewable sources of energy, and we need to return to them but using clean, modern versions. Worldwide, the heat and light from the sun is one of the most important sources of clean, renewable energy.

The course is presented using a blend of talking head and animation. We illustrate our points with images and case studies. Like all life, the course begins with the sun, which provides us with all the heat and light we need. We then examine how we can use this heat and light. To do this, we explore the four main solar technologies and their advantages and disadvantages.

The course ends with a summary and a response to the question, why isn’t solar energy powering everything? There’s a quiz to check the knowledge you’ve acquired and a resource document for you to download.