Photovoltaic Panels
Photovoltaic panels have a bunch of solar cells inside of them.
One way to use the sun’s light to create electricity is to get a photovoltaic (PV) panel. Photovoltaic panels are made up of a bunch of solar cells. Photovoltaic panels are made of silicon, an element that changes sun’s light to electricity. Scientists are trying to invent photovoltaic panels made out of something besides silicon. Photovoltaic panels have a lot of electrons inside of them. When the sun hits the photovoltaic panel it creates enough energy that the electrons that are inside of it move all over the place which makes electricity. Objects have to be connected to both the negative and the positive side of the photovoltaic panel to work. You want to face your panels towards the south on a 40-50 degree angle. When you get a solar powered house your electric bill can be as low as $40 and only use 390 kWh. If you don’t have a solar powered house then you can use up to 3,100 kWh.
Mirrors
Mirrors reflect the sun's light.
Another way to get electricity from the sun is you can use mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a pipe filled with water that boils up to 6,360 degrees Fahrenheit. The best mirrors are made out of silver. The mirrors have a parabolic curve. A parabolic curve is two curves that make it like a circle to reflect the sun’s light onto a certain spot. One example of a parabolic curve is the Dish Network satellite. You can also reflect the sun’s light onto a tower that is filled with oil and then use that hot oil to boil water. You use the steam of the hot water to power a machine that creates electricity. This way can be very expensive because when the wind blows the mirrors might fall over and break. Also, you can make some mirrors move towards the sun using computers.