Analysis of factors affecting the solar radiation received by any region

Abstract

Solar energy is the ultimate source of energy on our planet. All other sources of energy are derivative of it. Lately photovoltaic cells both organic and inorganic have gained a greater commercial ground than ever. Initiatives such as International Solar Alliance have given a boost to solar energy harnessing. Therefore, lots of efforts have been put in making photovoltaic devices more efficient. But harnessing of solar energy primarily depends on availability of quality and quantity of insolation or solar radiation received by an area on ground. several factors such as altitude, terrain, air quality, cloud cover, vegetation of the region etc. collectively determine the net solar radiation received by a particular area which can harnessed by solar cells or solar panels to produce electricity. Therefore, in this paper we have studied the effects of these factors on total solar radiation received by earth and hence proposed the suitable conditions for setting up solar harnessing devices.