. Imagine a giant sphere with a radius of 1 AU surrounding the Sun. What is the surface area of this sphere, in square meters? (Hint: The formula for the surface area of a sphere is 4nr².)
. Imagine a giant sphere with a radius of 1 AU surrounding the Sun. What is the surface area of this sphere, in square meters? (Hint: The formula for the surface area of a sphere is 4nr².)
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Transcribed Image Text:57. Solar Power Collectors. This problem leads you through the
calculation and discussion of how much solar power can in
principle be collected by solar cells on Earth.
a. Imagine a giant sphere with a radius of 1 AU surrounding
the Sun. What is the surface area of this sphere, in square
meters? (Hint: The formula for the surface area of a
sphere is 4rr2.)
b. Because this imaginary giant sphere surrounds the Sun,
the Sun's entire luminosity of 3.8 × 1020 watts must pass
through it. Calculate the power passing through each
square meter of this imaginary sphere in watts per square
meter. Explain why this number represents the maximum
power per square meter that a solar collector in Earth
orbit can collect.
c. List several reasons why the average power per square
meter collected by a solar collector on the ground will
always be less than what you found in part b.
d. Suppose you want to put a solar collector on your roof. If
you want to optimize the amount of power you can
collect, how should you orient the collector? (Hint: The
optimal orientation depends on both your latitude and
the time of year and day.)
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