Historic Solar Tech
Sunset
My friend Taylen Paterson has an interesting solar tech blog at: http://solar.calfinder.com/
His collection of historic solar tech is a good read:
This is the age of Solar. It’s hard when you’re living in it to tell exactly how history will remember your time and place, but it seems ever more obvious that our current Digital Age will be followed by a Renewable Revolution.
But let us not think that we’re the beginning. The Sun was powering Earth long before humankind took its first step, and for five thousand years, we’ve been fascinated by that fiery orb in the sky and all the energy it delivers. So in the interest of a little humility and humor, following are 15 moments, mavericks and milestones from solar energy’s long and winding road to the historic revolution we are so lucky to be a part of…
1. home solar powerGreco-Roman Daylighting – Said the great Socrates, “In houses that look toward the south, the sun penetrates the portico in winter.” Over 3,000 years ago, the Greeks and Romans utilized south-facing windows in their homes and bathhouses to provide solar warmth. The Romans actually used glazing in the form of glass or mica to trap solar heat. And even centuries before that, both cultures burned attacking ships of war by reflecting sunlight off of mirrors or bronze shields.
2. Give Me Solar or Give Me Death – It’s the 6th Century A.D. in the eastern Roman Empire, and sunrooms on houses are so prevalent that the Justinian Code (issued by emperor Justinian I) had to be amended to include “sun rights” – laws to ensure that every homeowner had reasonable access to the sun.
3. home solar steam engineThe Solar Steam Engine – Skip ahead to 1861. Auguste Mouchout designs and begins work on the world’s first active solar motor, a steam engine powered entirely by the sun. Unfortunately, and eerily reminiscent of more modern times, Mouchout’s invention fell prey to high construction costs and falling costs for English coal at the time. Thus, his landmark invention and precursor to the modern parabolic dish collector was relegated to obscurity for many years to come.
4. The Golden Solar Cell – Not long after Mouchout began work on his steam engine in France, American inventor Charles Fritts was toying with the first solar cells. They were made from a wafer of selenium coated with a thin layer of gold to create electricity.
5. home solar powerNobel Solar – In 1921, the first Nobel Prize was awarded for solar power innovation. The winner? Albert Einstein, for his 1905 theory (proven in the lab by 1921) on the photoelectric effect. It appeared in a paper published along with his theory of relativity.
6. The Sun Queen – There is arguably no greater solar pioneer than Maria Telkes, dubbed the “Sun Queen” for all her solar energy efforts. Among other things, Maria Telkes has the distinction of designing the first-ever residential solar heating system for the first home solar power system in 1948. The system was commissioned by the sculptor Amelia Peabody.
More at Solar Calfinder
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