A well-known Indigenous story from the Pacific Northwest tells how Raven the Trickster stole the Sun from a Chief and released it to the sky, giving light to all. Many cultures and traditions have stories related to sun and light, such as origin stories or stories about the darkest time of year around the winter solstice. The sun is also the original source of almost all energy on Earth.
Builders can use passive solar to reduce energy costs by designing homes to take advantage of solar energy. According to the National Renewable Energy Lab, “Passive solar technologies convert sunlight into usable heat and cause air movement for ventilating to heat and cool living spaces without active mechanical or electrical devices.” Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems also take advantage of solar energy by using radiant energy from the sun and turning it into electrical energy that we can use in our homes, schools, and businesses.
“Alaska’s high latitude presents the challenge of having minimal solar energy during long winter months when energy demand is greatest. At the same time, solar generation in the shoulder months (spring and fall) is often impressive in northern latitudes where clear skies, cool temperatures, dry air and bright, reflective snow all support solar generation.” -Renewable Energy Atlas of Alaska (2019), page 14. Because of this, spring can be the time of year when some solar PV systems have their highest output.
More Alaskans are adding solar PV systems to their buildings, taking advantage of net metering to save energy and money. Net metering is a billing mechanism that credits renewable energy system owners (like on homes or businesses) for the electricity they add to the grid. It allows them to offset the amount of electricity they use and therefore pay for. In 2023, the Alaska Railbelt (the electrical grid from Fairbanks to the Kenai Peninsula), added 2 megawatts of net metered capacity, a growth of 20%, most of which was solar (Pike, 2024).
Large projects like the 8.5 megawatt solar farm built in Houston, Alaska in 2023 (Fanelli, 2023), also feed into the grid but sell electricity to utilities under independent power producer (IPP) agreements. This project is also the site of agrivoltaics research on farmed crops and native berry plants grown under solar panels (Crichton, 2024).
Recent federal incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act and falling costs of solar PV panels have allowed more people to install solar on their homes and businesses. Alaska also received funding in 2024 from the Solar for All program to support community solar installations and residential rooftop solar for low-income and disadvantaged households (Alaska Energy Authority, 2024).
Understanding how solar PV works, and busting myths about solar such as not working in Alaska or not working on cloudy days, is important so that more homes and businesses can take advantage of the renewable energy resource and reduce energy costs. Additionally, solar installers, electricians, and other related careers are seeing a huge growth through the United States, including Alaska (Interstate Renewable Energy Council, 2023). This lesson will guide students through measuring the volts (and amps for 9-12 students) that small solar panels can produce in different lighting conditions, demonstrating their effectiveness in Alaska and low-light conditions.