Solar Research: Meteorology
The weather has a great influence on solar panels and vice versa. Solar panels are supplying more and more electricity to the grid. It is therefore of fundamental importance to understand and predict how much solar radiation reaches the solar panels and how this varies.
This variation is mainly caused by cloud cover, which is still one of the most difficult weather phenomena to predict. In addition, large solar parks change the local climate by altering the amount of light received by the surface. This also changes the energy balance and thus the conditions for vegetation. If the surface is large enough, the parks in turn influence the weather, with changes in temperature, humidity and cloud cover occurring downwind.
Solar panels can also play a role in reducing evaporation. Agrivoltaics makes use of this phenomenon. Evapotranspiration (evaporation from soil and vegetation) is a theme of research. We would like to include this in the research on agrivoltaics. We also want to develop this theme internationally and put it on the agenda.
Similar projects
Key publications
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Characterizing solar PV grid overvoltages by data blending advanced metering infrastructure with meteorology
Solar Energy (2021), Volume: 227 - ISSN 0038-092X - p. 312-320. -
Record high solar irradiance in Western Europe during first COVID-19 lockdown largely due to unusual weather
Communications Earth & Environment (2021), Volume: 2, Issue: 1 - ISSN 2662-4435 -
Analysis of high frequency photovoltaic solar energy fluctuations
Solar Energy (2020), Volume: 206 - ISSN 0038-092X - p. 381-389. -
Three‐dimensional radiative effects by shallow cumulus clouds on dynamic heterogeneities over a vegetated surface
Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems (2020), Volume: 12 - ISSN 1942-2466