Question

What is the ultimate energy for all life on earth?

Answer 1

Hint: Solar energy is the radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed in different ways by humans. The energy contains infrared rays which is channeled into engineering different technologies for mankind. It is also an inexhaustible source of energy.

Complete answer:
The Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of incoming solar radiation in the upper atmosphere. 70 percent absorbed by clouds, oceans and landmasses. Most of the world’s population live in areas with insolation levels of 150–300 watts/$m^2$, or 3.5–7.0 kWh/$m^2$ per day which means mankind is exposed to a practically limitless amount of solar energy. Therefore, the sun makes the ultimate source of energy for all living things. The potential solar energy that could be used by mankind differs from the amount of solar energy present near the surface of Earth because of factors such as geography, time variation, cloud cover and available land. These factors limit the amount of solar energy that we can acquire. Geography affects solar energy potential because areas that are closer to the equator receive higher amounts of solar energy. However, the use of photovoltaics significantly increases the solar energy potential in areas that are farther from the equator as they follow the sun’s position. Time variation affects solar energy because during the nighttime, there is little solar radiation on Earth for the solar panels to absorb. Cloud cover can affect the potential of solar panels as they block incoming light from the Sun and reduce the overall light available for solar cells. Solar technologies are characterized as either passive or active depending on the way they capture, convert and distribute sunlight.

Note:
The amount of solar energy reaching the surface of Earth is so vast that in one year it is about twice as much as obtained from all of the Earth’s non-renewable resources of coal, oil, natural gas and mined uranium combined.