{"id":65906,"date":"2022-10-13T10:09:23","date_gmt":"2022-10-12T23:39:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=65906"},"modified":"2025-12-18T14:24:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T04:54:00","slug":"solar-is-cool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/solar-is-cool\/","title":{"rendered":"Another Solar Myth Busted: No, Solar Panels Do Not Warm The Planet"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Myth<\/p>\r\n

Recently, I’ve noticed a number of solar myths coming back to haunt the comments section of this blog. Here’s the latest one:<\/p>\r\n

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“Those black solar panels actually heat the planet by increasing the amount of energy the earth absorbs from the sun? \u00a0Ha! You never thought of that did you!”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

<\/p>\r\n

Solar panels<\/a> absorb energy.\u00a0 It’s what they’re made to do.\u00a0 As a result, they often reflect less sunlight energy back into space than the surface they’re placed over.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

So no, solar panels do not heat the Earth.<\/p>\r\n

The overall effect of solar panels is far in the opposite direction.\u00a0 They help prevent a heating planet by reducing fossil fuel generation and greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\r\n

This may then cause someone to ask…<\/p>\r\n

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“Ignoring the effect of greenhouse gases, do solar panels heat the planet?”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

The answer is still no. This is because unlike most other forms of generation, solar doesn’t release large amounts of waste heat in the process of producing electricity.\u00a0 By reducing the need for generation that creates heat from chemical or nuclear reactions, solar power helps cool the planet.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

After learning this, someone who is really determined to know if solar panels contribute to global heating in any way could ask…<\/p>\r\n

\r\n

“Ignoring greenhouse gases and ignoring waste heat unavoidably released by most other forms of generation, do solar panels heat the planet?”<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

In that case, the answer is…<\/p>\r\n

…maybe.<\/p>\r\n

It depends on the location and situation, but overall solar panels have a mild cooling effect<\/a> on the planet.\u00a0 While the cooling effect isn’t strong, it is better than any other form of generation.<\/p>\r\n

Below, I’ll explain why solar is the coolest energy source.<\/p>\r\n

Albedo<\/h2>\r\n

Albedo<\/a> is a measure of how bright or dark something is1<\/a><\/sup>.\u00a0 An object that most sunlight energy bounces off has a high albedo, while something that mostly absorbs sunlight has a low albedo.<\/p>\r\n

\"\"

“Hi! My name’s Al Bedo and you can bite my shiny mirrored butt!”\u00a0 (Because I lost a bet I’m required to reference a bizarre 70s science fiction movie in this article.\u00a0 Anyone who can correctly name it in the comments wins my condolences.)<\/p><\/div>\r\n

A perfectly reflective object will have an albedo of 1.\u00a0 A perfectly dark object will have an albedo of 0.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

One thing to keep in mind about albedo is the world is not as bright and shiny a place as most people think.\u00a0 As an example, what do you think is the albedo of your bathroom mirror?<\/p>\r\n