Enough sunlight hits the earth in an hour that it could power the world for one year. In 2008 Louis Palmer drove around the world on a car that uses solar energy as power. In 24 hours he could travel up to 100 kilometers at night. However, these solar powered cars are very bulky and require plenty of sunlight to travel a decent distance. Throughout the years car makers have developed solar cars, but they have never reached the mass market because it is simply too impractical; solar panels just don’t generate enough energy. Currently a square meter of solar panels only get seventy-five percent of a kilo-watt hour per day. This would let you travel 2 miles. Despite these challenges, inventors and auto companies continue to research solar cells. Solar power could be fused with petroleum and electricity, helping shape a tribrid car. For $10,000 extra, the 2010 Toyota Prius can come with a solar roof. The Leaf hybrid car by Nissan can also be made with solar panels. When the day comes when an average car runs on solar energy, the solar panels may be on houses rather than the cars themselves. 10 square meters of solar panels on the roof of a house could power a car for 15,000 miles.
It’s unfortunate that technology isn’t advanced enough for solar panels to generate a respectable amount of energy. I do have hope that in the future that they will, and that would solve the energy crisis the world is going to face. I didn’t know that a Prius could come with solar panels, as that means the car utilizes 3 forms of energy already. I’m glad that auto companies are exploring solar energy as well as other renewable energy sources. With any luck, gas stations will become non-existent in my lifetime. I think one day almost all homes would have solar panels on the roof. It would be amazing if a house could function on its own just from generating energy from sunlight.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704129204575505803617253926.html?mod=WSJ_auto_IndustryCollection
I feel as though there will neverbe enough technology to create solar panels that will be able to operate a vehicle, or even a house. The whole process depends on a great part of the environment in order for this to function, and right now it doesn't seem as though this will be likely. Even though auto companies are advancing in their technological studies, there is still a lot more that will need to be done as they use solar energy, as well as other renewable energy sources to help with this energy crisis.
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