Lesson
5: What is Montana’s
Solar Energy Potential?
Objectives
- Students will analyze and understand
Montana’s solar resource potential
- Students will compare the solar
potential of major Montana cities
- Students will compare Montana’s
solar potential with other states
Background
More solar energy falls on the
earth each minute than the world consumes in one year! However, not all of this
energy is available to us for direct use. Solar insolation—the amount of
sunshine available at a given location—varies according to such things as weather
patterns and season, latitude, and elevation. Solar insolation data, expressed
in kilowatt-hours per square meter per day (kWh/m^2/day), is used to determine
how much energy a solar system will produce.
Montana has an abundant solar
resource compared to many locations, and this valuable resource can be used to
save energy in residential and commercial construction, as well as farming, ranching,
recreation, and other industries.
Activity 1:
How Does Solar Insolation Differ by Location?
Materials:
- Computer with Internet access
- Colored pens or markers
- Paper or poster board for charting
results
Method:
- Separate class into three groups.
- Assign one group to find solar
insolation data for several Montana cities (select cities in both the western
and eastern part of the state), and the other groups to find solar insolation
data for the same number of cities in various states in the U.S. To make an effective
comparison, instruct the groups to select cities as follows:
- Group 1 will choose Montana cities
with the same latitudes but different elevations.
- Group 2 will choose U.S. cities
with the same basic climate but different latitudes.
- Instruct each group to graph
insolation data by month and by city or state, and to note latitude, average monthly
climate information, and elevation for each site.
- Each group will present findings
to class.
Wrap-up
Lead a class discussion on why
there is more solar insolation available at different locations. Your students
should be able to correlate the impact of latitude, climate, season, and elevation
on solar insolation.
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