Pune: Study in IMD’s MAUSAM Journal Highlights Trends in India’s Solar Radiation and Implications for Solar Power Potential
Pune: Study in IMD's MAUSAM Journal Highlights Trends in India's Solar Radiation and Implications for Solar Power Potential
Findings in MAUSAM Journal Highlight Urgency for Enhanced Solar Technology Adoption.
24 April 2024
By Payoshi Bisht
Recently, a research paper on solar radiations and its importance was published in the MAUSAM, a monthly research journal published by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and is the first of its kind in the field of meteorology, hydrology and geophysics.
MAUSAM, formerly known as the Indian Journal of Meteorology, Hydrology and Geophysics, was launched in January 1950. It is one of the premier scientific research journals published in this region of the world. The journal publishes original scientific research papers on a quarterly basis.
The four issues of MAUSAM are published in January, April, July and October. The main focus of this journal is on climatology, especially the troposphere. This journal focuses on the study of monsoon and oceanography in general.
The research discusses how to make the best use of solar energy for power generation and why it is necessary to know the variations in solar power potential across the country. This requires precise information on solar radiation and variations in it. In this research, analysis on climatological and trend data on Global Radiation (GR), Diffuse Radiation (DR), Bright Sunshower Hours (BHS) and Technical Potential of Solar Power (SPV potential) has been conducted, using in-situ data collected from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) for the years 1985-2019.
The focus of the research is on the decreasing solar power potential in the country. The Global Radiation (GR) and Bright Sunshine Hours (BHS) are trending up and down in most areas of the country, but the declining rate of GR has been weakening in the last 10 years. The technological potential of solar energy is trending down in most selected stations, which is concerning. It requires the widespread use of better efficiency solar panels to meet the requirements of solar energy.
