Surface Area Of Solar Panel

The number of solar cells on one panel is directly related to its length.

Surface area of solar panel.

A total surface area this is the total surface area of your solar panels. Solar panels are installed in arrays with the number of panels varying depending on the roof area available and the amount of power you wish to generate. If an average solar panel measures at 65 inches by 39 inches how does that translate to a full sized rooftop solar panel system. Typical residential solar panel dimensions today are about 65 inches by 39 inches or 5 4 feet by 3 25 feet with some variation among manufacturers.

To figure out what the total surface area is simply multiply the length and width of the solar panel by each other. Since spacecraft have to be small this limits the amount of power that can be produced. So the total area required is 30 000 200 150 m 2. Sunpower panels are 61 3 inches by 41 2 inches.

Then divide that answer by the wattage of the solar panel intended to be used. The number of solar panels of the size used in the calculation will theoretically meet that energy demand during a sunny day. Solar panels need to have a lot of surface area that can be pointed towards the sun as the spacecraft moves. Lets assume the solar panels have 20 efficiency so the energy produced is 200 watt m 2.

To calculate the area you need to know the efficiency of the solar panels. 72 cell commercial solar panels are approximately 13 inches longer than 60 cell residential panels.