History Of Solar Panels In The Us

Congress passed the solar energy research development and demonstration act of 1974 and the federal.

History of solar panels in the us.

As we enter an important new era in solar power s history it s more important than ever to remember just how far solar power has come. This is enough capacity to power the equivalent of 12 million average american homes 1. Congress passed five energy bills in 1974 two of which cited solar power as a potential solution to the energy crisis. A year later the world s first solar powered automobile was demonstrated at an auto show.

Between 1970 and the 1990s there was a massive rise in the use of solar within the us. The first instance of this was when the us became the first country to use solar power in space. Installations have grown 35 fold to an estimated 62 5 gigawatts gw today. 1954 photovoltaic technology is born in the united states when daryl chapin calvin fuller and gerald pearson develop the silicon photovoltaic pv cell at bell labs the first solar cell capable of converting enough of the sun s energy into power to run everyday electrical equipment.

Concentrated solar power and solar thermal energy applications had been in use for a while but purely photovoltaic solar isn t born until u s. The rise of solar power. Solar power is more affordable accessible and prevalent in the united states than ever before. The vanguard i satellite was launched into space in 1958 and the still orbiting satellite used a one watt panel to power its radios.

The federal government s oil price controls of the early 1970s followed by the arab oil embargo of 1973 and the federal government s emergency petroleum allocation act of 1973 created an energy crisis in the united states. In 2010 president barack obama requested that solar panels and a solar water heater be installed on the white house. It was around this time in the 1970s that an energy crisis emerged in the united states. Our timeline below highlights some of the most momentous achievements in the history of solar power right back to the discovery of the photovoltaic effect in 1839.

This energy crisis catalyzed the federal government s commitment to develop solar energy. 1958 satellites and space stations began using solar power. Solar powered presidencies in 1979 president jimmy carter had solar panels installed on the white house during his term as president. However in 1981 president ronald reagan ordered the white house solar panels to be removed.

This is the first time enough of the sun s energy is converted to run electrical equipment. Solar cell engineering became more efficient cutting pv costs down 80.