Best Practices Handbook for the Collection and Use of Solar Resource Data for Solar Energy Applications

Abstract

The first version of this handbook was developed in response to a growing need by the solar energy industry for a single document addressing the key aspects of solar resource characterization.The solar energy industry has developed rapidly throughout the last few years, and there have been significant enhancements in the body of knowledge in the areas of solar resource assessment and forecasting.Thus, this second version of the handbook was developed from the need to update and enhance the initial version and present the state of the art in a condensed form for all of its users.Although the first version of this handbook was developed by only researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, this version has additional contributions from an international group of experts primarily from the knowledge that has been gained through participation in the International Energy Agency's Solar Heating and Cooling Programme Task 36 and Task 46.As in the first version, this material was assembled by scientists and engineers who have many decades of combined experience in atmospheric science, radiometry, meteorological data processing, and renewable energy technology development.Readers are encouraged to provide feedback to the authors for future revisions and an expansion of the handbook's scope and content.