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what is insolation?

Insolation is a incident solar radiation. A measure of the solar energy incident on a given area over a specific period of time. Usually expressed in kilowatt-hours per square metre per day or indicated in peak sun hours.

Insolation is a calculation of the amount of solar radiation received from the Sun, either at the top of the Earth’s atmosphere or at land level. The term is derived from the phrase INcoming SOLar RadiATION. It is usually defined as watts per meters squared (W/m2) for solar cell power applications, or kilowatt hours per square meter per day (kW-h/m2-day), which is commonly used in meteorology for weather predictions. The entire spectrum of radiation from the Sun is considered, which ranges from a wavelength of about 350 nanometers to 2,350 nanometers, even though the visible spectrum of light for human beings is only between 400 and 700 nanometers.


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