Indirect Solar Technology Comparison

1. Indirect Solar Power Generation. This is a tried and true system of power generation where the power can ultimately be traced to the sun, but is directly based upon wind or upon water based gravity systems. Some wind is developed as a result of the rotation of the earth, but most wind strong enough for power generation is the result of uneven solar heating of the earth's surface. Likewise hydroelectric systems are powered by the earth's water cycle, which is in turn driven by solar evaporation. In that sense, wind power and hydro power are forms of solar power. Novel approaches to indirect solar can be experimented with by do it yourselfers as well. So called "solar towers" can be constructed that generate small amounts of electrical power in larger green houses. Evaporative solar towers can also be built to take advantage of the water cycle. Traditional wind based turbines are well within the skills of many DIY experimenters and emerging technologies, like piezo trubulance generators are reasonable DIY experiments. We will explore some of these here as well.