Solar Geometry Lecture Notes Original

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Solar Radiation Geometry

Definitions of Terms
Term Symbol Definition
Great Circle Circle on the earth’s surface lying on a plane which passes
through the centre of the earth
Meridian A great circle of the earth which passes through the north and
south poles.
Latitude φ Angular location relative to the equator. Positive in northern
hemisphere; negative in southern hemisphere. Used (with
longitude) to define location on the earth’s surface.
–90º ≤ φ ≤ +90º
Longitude ψ The angle between line from the earth’s centre to location, and
the plane passing through the earth’s centre and the Greenwich
Meridian. (The Greenwich Meridian is an arbitrary datum).
Specified as east or west of Greenwich. Used (with latitude) to
define location on the earth’s surface.
Solar Declination Angle δ The angle between the equatorial plane and a line between the
earth and the sun. It is positive when the line between the earth
and the sun falls north of the equator.
−23.45º ≤ δ ≤ +23.45º
Solar Noon The time when the sun is highest in the sky.
Hour Angle ω The angle between the sun’s rays at a given time and the sun’s
rays at solar noon. It is zero at solar noon; negative in the hours
before solar noon; positive in the hours after solar noon.
Solar altitude angle αs The angle between the sun’s rays and the horizontal plane.
0º ≤ αs ≤ 90º
Solar zenith angle θz The angle between the sun’s rays and the point directly
overhead. The complement of αs.
Solar azimuth angle γs In southern hemisphere, the angle between the projection of the
sun’s rays on the horizontal plane and north.
(In northern hemisphere, angle between projection and south.) .
0 º < γs ≤ 180º for angles in westerly direction
-180º < γs ≤ 0º (or 180 º < γs ≤ 360º) for angles in easterly
direction. Note that sometimes a different sign convention is
used. Therefore, note whether sun is in eastern or western part
of the sky.
Tilt angle of surface β The angle of the surface with respect to the horizontal. It is
positive for surfaces facing towards the equator. β = 0º for a
horizontal surface and β = 90º for a vertical surface.
Surface azimuth angle γ In the southern hemisphere, the deviation from north of the
projection onto the horizontal plane of the normal to a given
surface.(In northern hemisphere, it is the deviation from south.)
0 º < γs ≤ 180º for angles in westerly direction
-180º < γs ≤ 0º (or 180 º < γs ≤ 360º) for angles in easterly
direction. Note that sometimes a different sign convention is
used. Therefore, note whether normal of surface points to
eastern or western part of the sky.
Angle of incidence θ For a given surface, the angle between the sun’s rays and the
normal to the surface.
Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010
Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 1

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1. Latitude, Longitude, Solar Declination, Solar

Time
Longitude and Latitude

We can specify the location of a point P on the surface of the earth by noting
its longitude and latitude. Refer to Figure 1. The longitude angle is shown as
ψ. The latitude angle is shown as φ. The centre of the earth is at C.
Figure 1 Latitude and Longitude
A great circle is a circle on the earth’s surface lying on a plane which passes
through the centre of the earth. A meridian is a great circle of the earth which
passes through the North and South Poles, i.e. it runs north-south.
Meridians are used to specify the longitude of a location. That is, lines of
longitudes are meridians. The meridian which passes through Greenwich in
England has longitude 0º. All other locations not on this meridian have
longitude east or west of Greenwich. Therefore, longitudes other than 0º and
180º must include the symbol E (for east) or W (for west).
Latitude is the angular location north or south of the equator. The latitude is
0º at the equator. Latitudes other than 0º must include the symbol N (for
north) or S (for south).

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• In the southern hemisphere, the latitudes run from 0º to 90º south,

with the south pole at 90º S.
• In the northern hemisphere, the latitudes run from 0º to 90º north,
with the north pole at 90º N.
Except for the equator, the lines of constant latitude are not great circles. The
Tropic of Cancer, the Tropic of Capricorn, the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic
Circle are all lines of constant latitude.
The longitude and latitude of a given location can be determined by
consulting an atlas. The longitude and latitude of major world cities may also
be found on the Internet. Note that published latitudes and longitudes of
cities may vary slightly depending on what location in the city is being
specified. Note also that information obtained from the Internet may be
inaccurate. It is always wise to check another source.
Latitude and longitude angles may be expressed either in degrees and
minutes, or just degrees using a decimal notation. Ensure that you know which
format in being used, and how to convert between the two formats. For example the
latitude and longitude of three cities (as specified in the Macquarie
Illustrated World Atlas, 1984) are shown in Table 1.
City Latitude Longitude

Degrees, minutes Degrees Degrees, minutes Degrees
(decimal) (decimal)
Melbourne 37º49’ S 37.82º S 144º58’ E 144.97º E
Singapore 1º17’ N 1.28º N 103º51’ E 103.85º E
Buenos Aires 34º36’ S 34.60º S 58º27’ W 58.45º W
Table 1 – Latitude and Longitude
The Effect of the Earth’s Movement on Solar Radiation

The earth rotates around the sun in an elliptical orbit, with the sun at one
focus of the ellipse. The earth takes one year to complete one rotation. The
elliptical orbit is very close to a circle, so the distance between the sun and
the earth remains roughly constant. (The distance varies between 1.472 × 108
km and 1.522 × 108 km.) The plane which contains the earth’s orbit around
the sun is called the ecliptic plane.
(Do not confuse the words elliptical and ecliptic. They are derived from the
words ellipse and eclipse respectively.)
The earth also spins about its own axis, the polar axis. One revolution takes
one day. The earth’s polar axis is tilted with respect to the ecliptic plane.
Imagine a plane passing through the earth’s equator. This is the equatorial
plane. The angle between the equatorial plane and the ecliptic plane is 23.45º.
In other words, the angle between the polar axis and the ecliptic plane is
66.55º (= 90º − 23.45º). See Figures 2 and 3.

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This inclination of the equatorial plane with the ecliptic plane gives rise to
the seasons.
In June, the northern hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, and the southern
hemisphere is tilted away from the sun. Therefore the sun’s rays strike the
northern hemisphere more directly and strike the southern hemisphere more
obliquely. So in June, it is summer in the northern hemisphere and winter in
the southern hemisphere.
In December the reverse happens. The southern hemisphere is tilted towards
the sun, and the northern hemisphere is tilted away from the sun. Therefore
the sun’s rays strike the southern hemisphere more directly and strike the
northern hemisphere more obliquely. So in December, it is summer in the
southern hemisphere and winter in the northern hemisphere.
This tilting also affects the length of time that the sun’s rays strike the earth
and hence the number of daylight hours. During summer, the number of
daylight hours is more than twelve, and during winter, the number of
daylight hours is less than twelve.
The longest day of the year, when the sun is highest in the sky (in the non-
tropical parts of the earth), is known as the summer solstice. The shortest day
of the year, when the sun is lowest in the sky is known as the winter solstice.
The summer solstice falls on or about December 21 in the southern
hemisphere, and on or about June 21 in the northern hemisphere. These dates
are reversed for the winter solstice. The equinoxes occur in between these
two dates, on or about March 22 and September 21. On these dates, the
length of daylight and the length of the night are equal. (Note that the dates
of the equinoxes and solstices may vary by a day or two.)
The solstices and the equinoxes can be seen on Figure 2.
At the line of latitude 23.45º N is the Tropic of Cancer, and at the line of
latitude 23.45º S is the Tropic of Capricorn. The region between these two
lines is called the tropics. In the non-tropical regions of the earth, the sun is
never directly overhead. On the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of
Capricorn, the sun is directly overhead only on the summer solstice.
Within the tropics, as we move closer to the equator, the effect of the earth’s
tilt on the seasons and the length of the day becomes less pronounced.
At the line of latitude 66.55º N is the Arctic Circle, and at the line of latitude
66.55º S is the Antarctic Circle. During the summer solstice on the Arctic and
Antarctic Circles, the sun does not set; in other words, there are 24 hours of
daylight. During the winter solstice, the sun does not rise; in other words,
there are 24 hours of night. North of the Arctic Circle and south of the
Antarctic Circle, the sun will not set for a period during the summer and will
not rise for a period during the winter.

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In Figure 3, we can see what happens on the June solstice. On the Tropic of
Cancer, the sun is directly overhead. (That is, the sun’s rays are
perpendicular to the earth’s surface.) On the Antarctic Circle at noon the sun
is on the horizon (i.e. the sun’s rays are parallel to the earth’s surface).
Therefore within the Antarctic Circle there is no sunlight. On the Arctic
Circle, in the middle of the night the sun is on the horizon; therefore within
the Arctic Circle the sun does not set.
Figure 2 Revolution of the Earth about the Sun
Figure 3 Sun's Rays on June Solstice

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Solar Declination Angle

We call the line between the centres of the earth and the sun the earth-sun
vector. The solar declination angle δ is the angle between the equatorial plane
and the earth-sun vector. See Figure 4. This angle will vary throughout the
year. It is conventional to consider δ as positive when the earth-sun vector is
north of the equatorial plane. The solar declination angle is as follows:
δ = +23.45º on June 21 (summer solstice in the northern hemisphere);
δ = −23.45º on December 21 (summer solstice in the southern hemisphere);
δ = 0º on the equinoxes.
sun’s position
earth-sun vector on June
June solstice solstice
N
Earth
δ on June solstice = 23.45º
sun’s position
equator on equinox
earth-sun vector
equinox
earth-sun vector
S December solstice sun’s position
on December
solstice
Figure 4 Solar Declination Angle
The solar declination angle in given approximately by the following:

⎛ 284 + N ⎞
δ = 23.45° × sin ⎜ 360 × ⎟ (1.1)
⎝ 365 ⎠
where N is the number of the day. (We will neglect leap years here.)
So, on January 1, N=1; on April 1, N=31+28+31+1=91; on December 31,
N=365; etc.

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Figure 5 is a graph showing the solar declination angle versus the time of the
year.
30º
Solar Declination Angle

20º
10º
0º
1-Jan 2-Mar 2-May 2-Jul 1-Sep 1-Nov 1-Jan
-10º
-20º
-30º
Date
Figure 5 – Variation of Solar Declination Angle over year
Solar Time
At a given point on the surface of the earth, we can specify a local meridian
(or line of longitude). Solar noon is the time when the sun crosses that local
meridian—when the sun is the highest in the sky that day. In the southern
hemisphere, the sun is directly in the north at solar noon. A solar day is the
length of time from one solar noon to the next. Solar time is therefore the
time based on the movement of the sun across the sky.
Solar time will generally not correspond to the time as indicated on our
clocks. There are three reasons:
1. Solar days are not of equal length. This is because the earth’s
orbit is not circular but elliptical, and because the equatorial
plane is inclined to the ecliptic plane. It is more convenient when
using clocks to assume that the days are of equal length—24
hours. The solar time can deviate from the time measured on
clocks by up to 16 minutes. The deviation depends on the time of
the year, and can be calculated using the Equation of Time.
Further details about the equation of time are given below.
2. The time on our clocks is determined by what time zone we are
in. To a person standing on the earth, the sun appears to rotate
around the earth from east to west. As the sun moves, the
location experiencing solar noon moves west with the sun. Only
points on the same line of longitude experience solar noon at the
same time. Yet it is more convenient for geographical regions to
use the same time zone. We call the time adopted for a given
region standard time. Below there are a few example of how to

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work out the relationship between solar time and standard time
for a particular location if we know its longitude and time zone.
3. Some places use daylight saving. That is, the clocks are put
forward during the summer.
It is also possible to estimate the time of solar noon by finding the mid point
between sunrise and sunset, taking into account any adjustment due to
daylight saving.
Equation of Time.
See Figure 6 for a graph of the equation of time.
Note carefully in the examples below how we use the Equation of Time.
When we determine the standard time of solar noon we need to subtract the
value of Equation of Time.
For further information about the equation of time visit the Royal
Observatory Greenwich’s website and select ‘Equation of Time’:
http://www.nmm.ac.uk/explore/astronomy-and-time/time-facts/ .
Equation of time
20
15
10
E (M in u te s )
-5
-10
-15
-20
1-Jan 31-Jan 2-Mar 1-Apr 2-May 1-Jun 2-Jul 1-Aug 1-Sep 1-Oct 1-Nov 1-Dec 1-Jan
Figure 6: Equation of Time

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Worked Example 1: Relationship Between Solar Time and

Standard Time
The length of day is 24 hours, so the time it takes the sun to traverse one
degree of longitude is 24hr/360º = 1/15 hr or 4 minutes. So, in 1 hour, the
sun will traverse 15º of longitude. Most time zones are in intervals of one
hour, though some countries or regions use half hour intervals. Standard
time is given relative to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
Let us look at how this affects the time of solar noon in Melbourne, Sydney,
Singapore and Buenos Aires on the dates given. Local time zones may be
found by consulting an atlas, or the telephone book. An Internet reference is
http://www.worldtimezone.com/.
(Note that information obtained from the Internet may be inaccurate. It is
always wise to check another source.)
Melbourne – February 1
Melbourne is in the state of Victoria, and the whole of Victoria uses the same
time zone: 10 hours ahead of GMT (abbreviated to GMT +10). Ten hours
ahead of GMT (according to solar time) corresponds to longitude 150º E (i.e.
10 × 15º). So the sun passes over the 150º E meridian 10 hours before it reaches
the 0º meridian.
Victoria extends from about longitude 141º E to longitude 150º E, and
Melbourne has longitude 144.97º E. So across the state of Victoria, there is a
difference of 36 minutes between when one side of Victoria experiences solar
noon and when the other side experiences it. Yet the whole of Victoria
experiences standard noon at the same time. In Melbourne, the difference
between solar noon and standard noon (i.e. noon according to standard time)
is 20 minutes, calculated as follows:
4 minutes of time
× (150° − 144.97°) = 20 minutes
° longitude
We have to add the 20 minutes to solar time to get standard time, since
Melbourne is west of the 150º E meridian. The figure below shows the
direction of the sun. When it is 12 noon on our watches (ignoring equation of
time for the moment), the sun is passing through the 150º E meridian, and
thus the sun is directly north (i.e. it is solar noon) for someone standing on
the 150º E meridian. It takes another 20 minutes before it is directly north
when we are standing in Melbourne (i.e. it takes another 20 minutes before it
is solar noon in Melbourne.) So this makes solar noon in Melbourne
correspond to 12.20 pm standard time.

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0º meridian (passing 144.97ºE 150ºE

through Greenwich)
direction
of sun
(Not to scale) Melbourne
5.03º longitude
takes 20.12 mins
We also need to include the equation of time and daylight saving time. From
the equation of time, we see that EOT ≈ –13 minutes on Feb 1. This value is
subtracted from solar time to give standard time.
On February 1, clocks are ahead one hour for daylight saving.
So to get standard time, we need to add one hour plus 20 minutes minus (–
13) minutes. (Remember –(–1 3) = +13)
So at solar noon in Melbourne, the standard time is 1.33 p.m.
Sydney – October 4
Sydney uses the same time zone as Melbourne: GMT +10. Ten hours ahead of
GMT is longitude 150º E. Sydney has longitude 151.07º E. The difference
between solar noon and standard noon is about 4 minutes
4 minutes of time
× (151.07° − 150°) = 4 minutes
° longitude
We have to subtract the 4 minutes from solar time to get standard time, since
Sydney is east of the 150º E meridian. The figure below shows the direction of
the sun. When it is 12 noon on our watches (ignoring equation of time), the
sun is passing through the 150º E meridian, and thus the sun is directly north
(i.e. it is solar noon) for someone standing on the 150º E meridian. Four
minutes before this, (11.56 am standard time) the sun was directly north for
someone standing in Sydney. Thus solar noon in Sydney occurs at 11.56 am
standard time.
0º meridian (passing 150ºE 151ºE

through Greenwich)
direction
of sun
Sydney
(Not to scale) 1º longitude

takes 4 mins

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We also need to include the equation of time. (Assume no daylight saving

time on this date)
From the equation of time, we see that EOT ≈ 12 minutes on October 4. This
value is subtracted from solar time.
So at solar noon in Sydney, the standard time is 11.44 a.m.
Singapore – August 31
Singapore uses the time zone 8 hours ahead of GMT (or GMT +8). Eight
hours ahead of GMT (according to solar time) is longitude 120º E. Since
Singapore has longitude 103.85º E, the difference between solar noon and
standard noon (i.e. noon according to standard time) is about 65 minutes:
4 minutes of time
× (120° − 103.85°) = 65 minutes
° longitude
We have to add the 65 minutes to standard time, since Singapore is west of the
120º E meridian.
From the equation of time, we see that EOT ≈ 0 minutes on August 31. So no
adjustment needs to be made for the equation of time.
So at solar noon in Singapore, the standard time is 1.05 p.m.
Buenos Aires – May 10

Buenos Aires is in Argentina, and the whole of Argentina uses the time zone
3 hours behind GMT (or GMT –3). Three hours behind GMT (according to
solar time) is longitude 45º W. Since Buenos Aires has longitude 58.45º W, the
difference between solar noon and standard noon (i.e. noon according to
standard time) is about 54 minutes
4 minutes of time
× (58.45° − 45°) = 54 minutes
° longitude
We have to add the 54 minutes to standard time, since Buenos Aires is west of
the 45º W meridian. Thus (ignoring equation of time and daylight saving),
solar noon corresponds to 12.54 pm standard time.

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0º meridian
58.45ºW 45ºW (passing through
Greenwich)
direction
of sun
Buenos
Aires (Not to scale)
13.45º longitude
takes 54 mins
From the equation of time, we see that EOT ≈ 4 minutes on May 10. This
value is subtracted from solar time.
So at solar noon in Buenos Aires, the standard time is 12.50 p.m.
Important Point: In both Singapore and Melbourne, the local longitude was
less than the time zone longitude, but in Buenos Aires the local longitude
was greater than the time zone longitude. Yet all three locations were west of
their local time zone longitudes. This is because east of Greenwich,
longitudes increase from west to east, and west of Greenwich, longitudes
increase from east to west. Compare the diagrams above for Melbourne and
Buenos Aires. You need to think about whether the time difference should be added
or subtracted to standard noon. It is suggested that you always do a quick
sketch similar to those above.
Hour Angle
Sometimes it is useful to express the time in degrees, rather than hours. To
do this, we need to define hour angle. We use the symbol ω for this. At a given
time, the hour angle is the angle between the sun’s rays at that time and the
sun’s rays at solar noon (when the sun is highest in the sky). Now 24 hours is
equivalent to 360º, so 1 hour is equivalent to 15º. The hour angle is zero at
solar noon. It is negative in the hours before solar noon and positive in the
hours after solar noon.
If we use a 24 hour clock for solar time, then
ω = (solar time − 12 ) × 15 (1.2)
ω
solar time = + 12 (1.3)
15
If solar noon corresponds to standard noon,
• at 4 p.m. (or 16:00), the hour angle ω = (16 − 12 ) × 15 = +60°
• at 9 a.m., (or 09:00) the hour angle ω = (9 − 12 ) × 15 = −45°

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As we know, solar noon does not always correspond to standard noon, so we

need to account for the difference.
Worked Example 2
Find the hour angle at 4 p.m. and 9 a.m. standard time in Singapore. Assume
that EOT = 0
In Singapore, solar noon occurs at 1.05 p.m. standard time. At 4 p.m.
standard time in Singapore, it is only 2 hours, 55 minutes past solar noon. In
other words, solar time is 2.55 p.m. or 14:55.
⎛ 55 ⎞
So the hour angle is ω = ⎜14 + − 12 ⎟ × 15 = 43.75°
⎝ 60 ⎠
At 9 a.m. standard time in Singapore, it is 4 hours, 5 minutes before solar
noon. In other words, solar time is 7.55 a.m. or 07:55.
⎛ 55 ⎞
So the hour angle is ⎜ 7 + − 12 ⎟ × 15 = −61.25° .
⎝ 60 ⎠
Activity A
Standard Time of Solar Noon

For the following cities, determine the standard time of solar
noon. Ignore daylight saving and the effect of the equation
of time. (Convert angles and hours to decimal form first.)
1. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (22º 54’ S; 43º 14’ W; GMT –3)
2. Adelaide, Australia (34º 55’ S; 138º 36’ E;
GMT +9.30)
3. Perth, Australia (31º 57’ S; 115º 51’ E; GMT +8)
4. Johannesburg, South Africa (26° 13’ S; 28° 02’ E;
GMT +2)
5. Madrid, Spain (40° 24’ N; 3° 41’ W; GMT +1)
6. Kathmandu, Nepal (27° 43’ N; 85° 19’ E; GMT +5.45)
7. New York, USA (40° 43’ N; 74° 01’ W; GMT –5)

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For the following locations and dates, determine the hour

angle at 8.30 a.m. and 2 p.m. standard time. Take into
account the effect of the equation of time.
1. Los Angeles, USA on January 1 (34º 03’ N; 118º 14’
W: GMT –8)
2. Sao Paulo, Brazil on April 1 (23º 32’ S; 46º 37’ W;
GMT –3)
3. Shanghai, China on December 1 (31° 14’ N; 121° 28’
E; GMT +8)
4. Paris, France on November 1 (48° 52’ N; 2° 20’ E;
GMT +1)
5. Perth, Australia on August 1 (31º 57’ S; 115º 51’ E;
GMT +8)
(Answers: 11.53 am; 12.16 pm; 12.17 pm; 12.08 pm; 1.15
pm; 12.04 pm; 11.56 am; –51.5º, 31º; –55º, 27.5º; –48.5º,
34º; –61º, 21.5º; –58.25º, 24.25º)

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2 Sun Angles
Solar Altitude, Solar Azimuth and Solar Zenith

We can specify the location of the sun relative to a point on the surface of the
earth using the solar altitude angle and the solar azimuth angle. These are
shown in Figure 7.
The solar altitude angle αs is defined as the angle between the sun’s rays and
the horizontal plane.
In the southern hemisphere, the solar azimuth angle γs is defined as the angle
between the projection of the sun’s rays on the horizontal plane, and north. It
is positive for angles west of north, and negative for angles east of north.
In the northern hemisphere, the solar azimuth angle γs is defined as the angle
between the projection of the sun’s rays on the horizontal plane, and south. It
is positive for angles west of south and negative for angles east of south.
The solar zenith angle θz is the angle between the sun’s rays and the point
directly overhead (called the zenith). Obviously, θz + αs = 90º.
Figure 7 Solar Angles – Southern Hemisphere

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The latitude angle φ is the local latitude, positive in the northern hemisphere
and negative in the southern hemisphere.
The solar altitude angle, solar azimuth angle and solar zenith angle can be
calculated as follows:
sin α s = sin φ ⋅ sin δ + cos φ ⋅ cos δ ⋅ cos ω (2.1)
cos δ ⋅ sin ω
sin γ s = (2.2)
cos α s
θ z = 90° − α s (2.3)
The solar azimuth angle is zero at solar noon.

The solar altitude angle will reach its peak value at solar noon, and will be
zero at sunrise and sunset.
Solar Azimuth – Which Quadrant?

The solar altitude angle αs falls in the range 0º to 90º. However, the solar
azimuth angle γs may be greater than 90º, or less than -90º. That is, in the
southern hemisphere, the sun may be in the southern part of the sky. (Or in
the northern hemisphere, the sun may be in the northern part of the sky.)
In the southern hemisphere, ⏐γs⏐ > 90º for the following times:
• When the solar declination is negative (i.e. the sun shines more
directly on the southern hemisphere), and when the sun is low in
the sky (i.e. the times close to sunrise and sunset).
• In the tropical latitudes, when the solar declination is negative, and
when the sun is high in the sky (i.e. in the times close to solar noon).
(For the northern hemisphere, the same applies for the period when the solar
declination is positive, i.e. when the sun shines more directly on the northern
hemisphere.)
Equation 2.2 does not tell us if γs is greater or less than 90º, as there are two
solutions to this equation. The correct solution is as follows:
tan δ
If cos ω > then –90º < γs < 90º
tan φ
tan δ
If cos ω < then γs < –90º or γs > 90º (2.4)
tan φ
Let us test this for Melbourne on the summer solstice. Melbourne has latitude
φ = –37.82º. On the summer solstice δ = –23.45º.

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tan δ tan (− 23.45°)

Thus = = 0.62
tan φ tan (− 37.82°)
We will determine the azimuth angle for solar time from 6am to 6pm (06:00
to 18:00).
In the following table, we apply the test from equation (2.4) to choose which
solution for the azimuth is correct. We can see that the azimuth angle falls in
range –90º < γs < 90º during the middle part of the day. This means that the
sun is in the north part of the sky. At the beginning and end of the day the
azimuth angle falls in range γs < –90º or γs > 90º. This means that the sun is in
the south part of the sky.
Solar hour Altitude Possible cos tan δ tan δ ? Azimuth

time angle angle Azimuth (ω)
cos ω > angle
tan φ tan φ
(ω) (αs) angles? (γs)
-71.1º No, therefore

06:00 -90º 14.1º 0.000 0.62 -108.9º
or -108.9º γs < –90º or γs > 90º
-87.6º No, therefore

08:00 -60º 37.3º 0.500 0.62 -92.4º
or -92.4º γs < –90º or γs > 90º
-69.4º Yes, therefore

10:00 -30º 60.6º 0.866 0.62 -69.4º
or -110.6º –90º < γs < 90º
0.0º Yes, therefore

12:00 0º 75.6º 1.000 0.62 0.0º
or 180.0º –90º < γs < 90º
69.4º Yes, therefore

14:00 30º 60.6º 0.866 0.62 69.4º
or 110.6º –90º < γs < 90º
87.6º No, therefore

16:00 60º 37.3º 0.500 0.62 92.4º
or 92.4º γs < –90º or γs > 90º
71.1º No, therefore

18:00 90º 14.1º 0.000 0.62 108.9º
or 108.9º γs < –90º or γs > 90º
Sunrise and Sunset

Let us calculate the time at which sunrise and sunset occur at a given latitude
on a given day.
When αs = 0, sin αs = 0
Therefore from equation 2.1
− sin φ ⋅ sin δ = cos φ ⋅ cos δ ⋅ cos ω
− tan φ ⋅ tan δ = cos ω
ω = cos −1 ( − tan φ ⋅ tan δ )
(2.5)

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Worked Example 3
What time does the sun rise and set on December 19 in Melbourne and
Singapore?
Melbourne
The clocks have been put forward one hour for daylight saving.
The number of the day N = 354, so δ = –23.448º. φ = –37.82º.
ω = cos −1 (− tan φ ⋅ tan δ)
= cos −1 ( − tan [ −37.82°] ⋅ tan [ −23.448°])
= cos −1 ( −0.3367 )
= ±109.67°
ω
solar time = + 12
15
− 109.67 + 109.67
= + 12 or + 12
15 15
= 4.69 or 19.31 hours
So time of sunrise = 4.69. Converting to hours and minutes we get 4.41 a.m
(solar time).
Time of sunset = 19.31. Converting to hours and minutes we get 7.19 p.m
(solar time).
We add one hour due to daylight saving, and 20 minutes due to the time
zone adjustment (see Worked Example No. 1). We subtract 2 minutes for the
equation of time.
So sunrise is at 5.59 a.m. (standard time) and sunset is at 8.37 p.m. (standard
time), and the number of daylight hours is about 14½ hours.
These times do not correspond exactly to the sunrise and sunset times
recorded in the daily newspaper. There are several reasons for the difference:
• The equation for the solar declination angle is an approximation
(since the number of days in a year is a little over 365).
• The equation of time varies slightly depending on the year.
• When the sun is low in the sky, the atmosphere refracts the sunlight.
Hence the sun appears to set and rise when the solar altitude is a
little below zero.
• The time when the sun appears to rise and set depends on the
observer’s elevation relative to the surrounding terrain.
We will neglect these small differences in this topic.

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Singapore
The number of the day N = 354, so δ = –23.448º. φ = +1.28º
ω = cos −1 (− tan φ ⋅ tan δ)
= cos −1 ( − tan [1.28°] ⋅ tan [ −23.448°])
= cos −1 ( −0.00969 )
= ±89.44°
ω
solar time = + 12
15
− 89.44 + 89.44
= + 12 or + 12
15 15
= 6.037 or 17.963 hours
So time of sunrise = 6.037. Converting to hours and minutes we get 6.02 a.m
(solar time).
Time of sunset = 17.963. Converting to hours and minutes we get 5.57 p.m
(solar time).
We need to add one hour and 5 minutes due to the time zone adjustment (see
Worked Example no. 1), and subtract 2 minutes for the equation of time. So
sunrise is at 7.05 a.m. and sunset is at 7.00 p.m.
As we can see, there are about 12 daylight hours in Singapore. Because
Singapore is so close to the equator, the number of daylight hours will be
about 12 throughout the year.

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Determining the Solar Altitude at Solar Noon

We can determine the solar altitude at solar noon for a given location on the
surface of the earth by examining Figure 8(a) to (d). Note carefully when we
use a positive angle, or a negative angle.

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Figure 8 Solar Altitude at Solar Noon
In the southern hemisphere at solar noon

• When δ < 0 90º – αs + (–δ) = –φ ∴αs = 90º – δ + φ
• When δ > 0 90º – αs = δ + (–φ) ∴αs = 90º – δ + φ
In the northern hemisphere at solar noon

• When δ < 0 90º – αs = (–δ) + φ ∴αs = 90º + δ – φ
• When δ > 0 90º – αs + δ = φ ∴αs = 90º + δ – φ
(2.6)

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Note that the equation is different in the southern and in the northern
hemispheres. Be careful when you use these equations that you give the
correct sign to the solar declination and the latitude.
Important Note: In the tropical latitudes, these equations may give a solar
altitude of greater than 90º. This will occur if the absolute value of the solar
declination is greater than the absolute value of the latitude. In these cases,
the noon sun will be behind you when you are facing the equator (i.e. in the
southern half of the sky if you are in the southern hemisphere, and in the
northern half of the sky if you are in the northern hemisphere). To find the
solar altitude, you should therefore subtract the calculated figure from 180º.
Maximum and Minimum Solar Altitude

We can now calculate the maximum and minimum solar altitude at solar
noon for a given point P on the surface of the earth. Let us calculate the
maximum and minimum solar altitude in Melbourne.
The maximum solar altitude at solar noon occurs on the summer solstice.
Checking the equation for the solar declination angle shows that δ reaches its
maximum negative value on day 355 (December 21). Hence: αs = 90º + φ–δ =
90º + (–37.82º) – (–23.45º) = 75.6º
The minimum solar altitude at solar noon occurs on the winter solstice. δ
reaches its maximum positive value on day 172 (June 21).
Hence: αs = 90º + φ –δ= 90º + (–37.82º) – (+23.45º) = 28.7º.
On the equinoxes, αs = 90º + δ – φ = 90º + (–37.82º) – (0º) = 52.2º.

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Solar Access
Let us consider how the altitude angle affects the amount of sunlight that
may enter a building. In the figure below, we see an overhang above a north-
facing window and the sun’s rays at solar noon. In the summer, the altitude
angle is high, and therefore the sun’s rays do not pass through window. In
the winter, the altitude angle is low, and therefore the sun’s rays can pass
through window. This is a useful feature, as it enables the sun to heat the
inside of a building in winter but not in summer.
Overhang prevents summer sun’s

rays from passing through window
winter sun’s
rays pass
through window
αsummer
αwinter

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Internet Resources
Note: You can find a useful calculator for checking the relationship between
solar time and standard time and determining azimuth and altitude angles at
‘Sustainable by Design’ http://www.susdesign.com/. Click on ‘SunAngle’
under ‘Tools’.
Squ1.org has a solar position calculator at
http://squ1.org/wiki/Solar_Position_Calculator
Activity B
Solar Altitude and Azimuth

For the following, determine the solar altitude at solar noon,
and the length of the day on the solstices and equinoxes.
1. Jakarta, Indonesia (6º 16’ S; 106º 48’ E)
2. Los Angeles, USA (34º 03’ N; 118º 14’ W)
What standard time does the sun rise and set in:
1. Rome, Italy (41º 54’ N, 12º 7’ E, GMT +1) on
March 1?
2. Manila, Philippines (14º 35’ N, 120º 57’ E, GMT +8)
on July 1?
Determine the solar altitude angle and solar azimuth angle

at 2 pm (solar time) in Rome and Manila on April 1.
Selected Answers: Jakarta Summer solstice: 72.8º (S),

12:21 hr; Equinox: 83.7º, 12 hr; Los Angeles Summer
solstice: 79.4 º; 14:16; Rome sunrise 6.55 am, sunset 5.55
pm; Manila sunrise 5.35 am, sunset 6.25 pm

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3 Sun Charts
Visualising the Motion of the Sun

As the sun moves through the sky, the azimuth and altitude angle change.
The path of the sun depends on the time of year.
Sunposition.info has a calculator that shows the path of the sun for different
locations and dates. See
http://www.sunposition.info/sunposition/spc/locations.php
The Nebraska Astronomy Applet Project has a simulator for the motion of
the sun at http://astro.unl.edu/naap/motion3/animations/sunmotions.swf.
This simulator allows you to change the latitude and the time of the year.
You can then generate the sun’s path. The sun angles can also be visualized
by considering the direction and length of the shadow cast by a stick figure.
Another applet for visualizing the sun’s path is provided by Solar Energy at
ANU. See
http://solar.anu.edu.au/EduResources/applets/SunPath/_sunpath.php
Squ1.org shows the sun paths in a 3-D diagram. It also shows the shadows
cast by a building.
See http://squ1.org/wiki/Sun-Path_Diagram
Cylindrical and Polar Sun Charts

We can show graphically the sun’s path across the sky using a sun chart. This
chart shows how the sun’s path changes for different times of the year. The
sun chart is in effect a graph of the solar altitude versus the solar azimuth.
We can construct either a cylindrical or a polar sun chart. In this course, we
will use both.
Figure 9 is a cylindrical sun chart for Melbourne (latitude –37.82º). The times
on the sun chart are solar times. Note that the azimuth is positive on the left
and negative on the right. This is because the azimuth is positive in the
westerly direction and when facing north, west is on the left. In the northern
hemisphere, the scale should be reversed.
The curves correspond (approximately) to the 21st of each month.
• The first (outer) curve represents the summer solstice (Dec 21);
• The next curve represents November 21 and January 21;

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• The third curve represents October 21 and February 21;

• The fourth (middle) curve represents the equinoxes (September 21
and March 21);
• The fifth curve represents August 21 and April 21;
• The sixth curve represents July 21 and May 21;
• The seventh (inner) curve represents the winter solstice (June 21).
(These dates are not exact, because the months are not of equal length.)
We see that the sun rises directly in the east and sets directly in the west only
on the equinoxes. Between September 21 and March 21, the sun rises south of
east and sets south of west. Between March 21 and September 21, the sun
rises north of east and sets north of west.
We also see that the sun is higher in the sky at solar noon in the summer, and
that the length of day is longer in the summer.
A cylindrical sun chart is not suitable for locations in the tropics. At certain
times of the year, there will be a discontinuity in the curve. In the tropical
regions, a polar sun chart should be used. In Figure 10, we see the polar sun
chart for Jakarta (latitude –6.27º). The azimuth angle is indicated by the
radial lines and the altitude by the concentric circles. Zero altitude (i.e.
ground level) is represented by the outer circle. An altitude of 90º (i.e.
straight up) is represented by the point in the middle.
Sun charts can be used to determine when a nearby object causes shading.
This is illustrated in the following worked examples.

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Latitude = -37.82º
90º
solar altitude
summer
12 noon 80º
solstice
1 pm 11 am
70º
2 pm 10 am
60º
3 pm 9 am 50º
4 pm 40º
8 am
30º
5 pm 7 am
winter 20º
6 pm solstice 6 am
10º
0º
135º 120º 105º 90º 75º 60º 45º 30º 15º 0º -15º -30º -45º -60º -75º -90º -105º -120º -135º
solar azimuth
West East
Figure 9 Cylindrical Sun Chart for Melbourne (Solar Time, No Daylight Saving)
The curves correspond (approximately) to the 21st of each month.

The first (outer) curve represents the summer solstice (Dec 21);
The next curve represents November 21 and January 21;
The third curve represents October 21 and February 21;
The fourth (middle) curve represents the equinoxes (September 21 and March 21);
The fifth curve represents August 21 and April 21;
The sixth curve represents July 21 and May 21;
The seventh (inner) curve represents the winter solstice (June 21).

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Latitude = – 6.27º
0º
10º –10º
20º –20º
30º –30º
10º
Altitude
40º –40º
20º
50º –50º
30º
60º 40º –60º

50º
Jun 21
70º –70º
60º
80º 70º –80º
80º
W 90º –90º E
100º –100º
2pm 1pm 12noon 11am 10am
3pm 9am
4pm 8am
60º Dec 21
110º 5pm 7am –110º
50º
120º 40º –120º
30º
130º –130º
20º
140º –140º
10º
150º –150º
160º –160º
170º –170º
180º
Figure 10 Polar Sun Chart for Jakarta (Solar Time)

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Worked Example 4
Consider the effect in Melbourne of shading from a fence shown in Figure
11a, b and c. By drawing the fence on the sun chart, determine when this
fence causes point Y to be in shade.
Fence – 4.2 m high
4m
20 m 5m
Y
North
Figure 11a Fence shown in plan view
20 m 4
3 north
2 4.2 m
fence 5 m
5 Y
4 m
Figure 11b Fence shown in 3-D view
Five points defining the fence outline are shown in Figure 11b and 11c.
Points 1 and 5 are on the ground.
3
2 4
1 5
Figure 11c Fence Outline shown in elevation view

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The altitude and azimuth of each point with respect to point Y are found
using basic trigonometry. Figure 12 shows how these are determined for
point 4. The results for all points are shown in the table below. The fence is
drawn on the sun chart in Figure 13.
5m
4m
γ4
triangle 1 (refer
to next figure
Y
Figure 12a Determine azimuth of point 4
From this diagram we can find the azimuth angle: tan γ 4 = 5

4
Triangle 2 (lies in
vertical plane)
4.2 m
fence αs
(4 2
+ 52 )
Y
4m 5m
Triangle 1 (lies in
horizontal plane)
Figure 12b Determine altitude of point 4
To determine the altitude, we need to consider the horizontal distance

between point Y and the base of the fence. On the diagram, triangle 1 is a
right-angled triangle lying in the horizontal plane (i.e. on the ground - the
same triangle as shown in figure 12a). It has sides of length 4 m and 5 m. The
length of the hypotenuse is (4 2 + 52 ) m.
The altitude angle is found by considering triangle 2, a right angle triangle of
sides (4 2 + 52 ) m and 4.2 m.
4.2
tan α 4 =
4 2 + 52

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Point Altitude Azimuth

⎛ 20 + 5 ⎞
1 α1 = 0 γ1 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 80.9°
⎝ 4 ⎠
⎛ ⎞
4.2 ⎛ 20 + 5 ⎞
2 α 2 = tan ⎜
−1 ⎟ = 9.4° γ 2 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 80.9°
⎜ 2 ⎟ ⎝ 4 ⎠
( 25) + 4 ⎠
2
⎝
⎛ ⎞
−1 ⎜ 4.2 ⎟ = 15.1° ⎛ 10 + 5 ⎞
3 α3 = tan γ 3 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 75.1°
⎜ 2 ⎟ ⎝ 4 ⎠
(15) + 4 ⎠
2
⎝
⎛ ⎞
4.2 ⎛5⎞
4 α 4 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 33.3° γ 4 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 51.3°
⎜ ⎟ ⎝4⎠
( 5)
2
⎝ + 42 ⎠
⎛5⎞
5 α5 = 0 γ 5 = tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 51.3°
⎝4⎠

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Latitude = -37.82º
90º
solar altitude
summer
12 noon 80º
solstice
1 pm 11 am
70º
2 pm 10 am
60º
3 pm 9 am 50º
40º
4 pm 8 am
4
30º
5 pm 7 am
3 winter 20º
6 pm solstice 6 am
2 10º
0º
solar azimuth
West East
Figure 13 Fence Shown on Melbourne Sun Chart
From Figure 13, we see when the fence causes point Y to be in shade.
• The curves representing the period between September 21 and
March 21 are not obscured by the fence. Therefore during this period
the fence will not cast a shadow on point Y.
• On the curve representing April 21 and August 21, the fence casts a
shadow from about 3.10 pm until sunset.
• On the curve representing the winter solstice, June 21, the fence
casts a shadow from about 3:50pm until sunset.

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Worked Example 5
Consider the effect in Jakarta of shading from a fence shown in Figure 14.
Determine when point Z is shaded by the fence.
Fence – 4.2 m high

20 m
North
Z
4m
Figure 14 Fence
Points are selected defining the fence outline, and then the altitude and
azimuth of each point with respect to point Z is found. The fence is drawn on
the sun chart in Figure 15. (Note that a number of points along the top of the
fence need to be found in order to define the curve.)
On June 21, point Z is in shade from sunrise to about 9:15 am. From October
to early March the fence does not cast a shadow on point Z.

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Latitude = – 6.27º
0º
10º –10º
20º –20º
30º –30º
10º
Altitude
40º –40º
20º
50º –50º
30º
60º 40º –60º

50º
Jun 21
70º –70º
60º
80º 70º –80º
80º
W 90º –90º E
100º –100º
2pm 1pm 12noon 11am 10am
3pm 9am
4pm 8am
60º Dec 21
110º 5pm 7am –110º
50º
120º 40º –120º
30º
130º –130º
20º
140º –140º
10º
150º –150º
160º –160º
170º –170º
180º
Figure 15 Fence no. 2 Shown on Jakarta Sun Chart

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Worked Example 6
Using the cylindrical sun chart for
Melbourne (latitude –37.82°), determine Building – 12 m tall
when a nearby building will cast a
shadow on a point X on the ground, for North
the 21st day of each month of the year. 2m 6m
The building is 12 m high and 8 m long. 4m
It is 4 m to the north of the point X.
X
Find altitude α and azimuth γ of points

2 3 4 5
as shown. Point 3 has been chosen to be
directly north of X.
1 6
Point Altitude α Azimuth γ

⎛2⎞
1 0º tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 26.56º W
⎝4⎠
⎛ 12 ⎞ ⎛2⎞
2 tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 69.56º tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 26.56º W
⎝ 2 +4 ⎠
2 2
⎝4⎠
⎛ 12 ⎞
3 tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 71.56º 0º
⎝ 4⎠
⎛ 12 ⎞ ⎛2⎞
4 tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 69.56º tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 26.56º E
⎝ 2 +4 ⎠
2 2
⎝4⎠
⎛ 12 ⎞ ⎛6⎞
5 tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 59.0º tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 56.31º E
⎝ 6 +4 ⎠
2 2
⎝4⎠
⎛6⎞
6 0º tan −1 ⎜ ⎟ = 56.31º E
⎝4⎠
This is then plotted on the sun chart.

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Latitude = -37.82º
90º
solar altitude
summer
12 noon 80º
solstice
1 pm 11 am
70º
2 pm 10 am
60º
3 pm 9 am 50º
40º
4 pm 8 am
30º
5 pm 7 am
winter 20º
6 pm solstice 6 am
10º
0º
solar azimuth
West
East
West East
• The building will not cast any shadow between just before
November 21 until just after January 21.
• The building casts a shadow on:
o Winter solstice from about 7.40 am to 1.50 pm
o May 21 and Jul 21 from about 8.00 am to 1.45 pm
o Apr 21 and Aug 21 from about 8.30 am to 1.25 pm
o Mar 21 and Sep 21 from about 9.10 am to 1.10 pm
o Feb 21 and Oct 21 from about 9.50 am to 12.50 pm

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Internet Resources
Website squ1.org shows how a fish-eye lens can be used to project nearby
buildings and other objects onto a sun chart. See http://squ1.org/wiki/Sun-
Path/Overshadowing
See also the website Solar Pathfinder http://www.solarpathfinder.com/
particular the demonstration videos at
http://www.solarpathfinder.com/video
Activity C
Effect of Shading from building – Melbourne

Using the cylindrical sun chart for Melbourne (latitude –
37.82º), determine when a nearby building will cast a
shadow on a point X on the ground. The building is 10 m
high, and 12 m long. It is 7 m directly north of the point X.
Draw the building on the sun chart by finding the altitude
and azimuth angles for the edges of
the building and then shading in the
Building – 10 m tall
building. The horizontal edge of the
building will not appear as a straight
line on the sun chart, as the altitude 6m 6m
of this line with respect to point X
varies. To draw this horizontal edge, 7m
find the end points and the mid North

point as shown on the diagram X
below.
2 3 4
1 5
▪ During what part of the year will the building cast no

shadow on point X?
▪ On the winter solstice, during which hours will the
building cast a shadow on point X?
▪ On August 21, during which hours will the building cast a

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shadow on point X?
(Answers: No shadow cast between about September 28

and March 14; Winter solstice, X is in shadow between
about 9 am and 3 pm solar time; August 21m X is in shadow
between about 9.40 am and 2.20 pm solar time)
Activity D
Length of a Shadow
▪ Determine the length and direction of the shadow cast
by a 10 m high flagpole at 3 pm solar time on July 13 at
latitude –37.82º.
▪ Determine the length and direction of the shadow cast
by a 10 m high flagpole at 2 pm solar time on February 9
at latitude –6.27º.
(Answers: 32.9 m at 43.3º E of S; 6.1 m at 65.4º E of N)
Activity E
Effect of Shading from infinitely long wall

Consider an infinitely long wall running east-west. At the
nearest point, the wall is 1 m north of point X on the
ground. Determine when the wall will cast a shadow on
point X for different wall heights. The latitude is –37.82º.
Find the relationship between the altitude and the azimuth
of the top of the wall, for walls of height Z m.
Now plot the curve of altitude versus azimuth for walls of
height 0.5 m, 1 m and 3 m. For each wall, determine:
▪ During what times of the year does the wall cast no
shadow on point X?
▪ On August 21, during what times of the day does the

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wall cast no shadow on point X?

▪ On October 21, during what times of the day does the
wall cast no shadow on point X?
(Answer: 3m wall, no shadow mid Nov to end Jan; Aug 21
shadow all day; Oct 21 no shadow sunrise to 8.20 am and
3.40pm to sunset. For 0.5m wall, no shadow Sept 21 to Mar
21; Aug 21 no shadow 7.50 am to 4.10 pm; Oct 21 no
shadow whole day.
Activity F
Effect of Shading from building 1– Jakarta

Using the graph of solar altitude versus solar azimuth for
Jakarta (latitude –6.27º), determine when a nearby building
will cast a shadow on a point X on the ground. The building
is 10 m high, and 12 m long. It is 2 m directly north of the
point X.
Building – 10 m tall
6m 6m
North 2m
X
Draw the building on the polar sun chart for Jakarta. Again
you need to use several points for the top edge of the
building.
Now, determine the following:
shadow on point X?
▪ On June 21, during which hours will the building cast a
shadow on point X?
▪ On August 21, during which hours will the building cast a
shadow on point X?

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Activity G
Effect of Shading from building 2 - Jakarta

Jakarta (latitude –6.27º), determine when a nearby building
will cast a shadow on a point Y on the ground. The building
is 20 m high, 5 m wide and 12 m long. Its distance from
point Y is as shown
Building – 20 m tall 5m
6m
12 m
3m
Y North
In this case you will need to find the altitude and azimuth
angles for two edges of the building and then shade in the
building. Locate the five points as shown (or more if
necessary) on the sun chart
Now, determine the following:

shadow on point Y?
▪ On the winter solstice, during which hours will the
building cast a shadow on point Y?
▪ On July 21, during which hours will the building cast a
shadow on point Y?
(Answer: No shadow mid Sept to end March. Winter solstice
shadow sunrise to 10.30am. July 21 shadow sunrise to
10.45am.)

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Activity H
Effect of Shading from tree

Melbourne (latitude –37.82º), determine when a nearby tree
will cast a shadow on a point Y on the ground.
The tree is located 8 m from point Y in the direction 20º
east of north. The height of the tree is 10 m and the
diameter of the trunk is 500 mm. Assume that the branches
and leaves of the tree are in the shape of a sphere of
diameter 5 m.
Draw the tree on the sun chart and determine the following:
▪ During what part of the year will the tree cast no shadow
on point Y?
▪ On the winter solstice, during which hours will the tree
cast a shadow on point Y?
▪ On August 21, during which hours will the tree cast a
shadow on point Y?
Hint: When determining angles on external edge of tree,
take line of sight from point Y.
(Answers: No shadow early October to early March. Winter

solstice shadow 10.30 to 10.45am. August 21 shadow 10.20
to 11.50 am)

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Activity I
Shading on a Window
Suppose we have a window on
a north-facing wall. Using a
horizontal overhang, as shown
in the figure, we can shade the
window during the summer
months, and let the sun in
during the winter months. The
latitude is –37.82º
Assuming that the window is 1
metre square, find height y,
and width x of the overhang to
meet the following
requirements:
▪ The window is completely
shaded at solar noon
between October 21 and
February 21.
▪ The whole window can
receive sunlight at solar
noon between April 21 and
August 21.
(Answers: 0.84 m; 0.72 m)

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Cylindrical and Polar Sun Chart Plotting Program

There is a program available on the Internet that can be used to plot
cylindrical sun charts for any other locations. This program is available from
the University of Oregon, Solar Radiation Monitoring Laboratory. It can be
found at: http://solardat.uoregon.edu/SunChartProgram.html
Note that this program uses a different sign convention for the azimuth
angle. However, it indicates East and West. This program can be used to plot
sun charts in solar time and in standard time. Below are sun charts for
standard time. Note that December to June is not symmetrical with June to
December, because of the effect of the Equation of Time. (See Figure 6.)
Below in Figure 16 are the sun charts for Melbourne standard time, June to
December and the sun charts for Melbourne standard time, December to
June.
Figure 17 shows the effect of latitude on the sun chart. (These charts use solar
time.) As the latitude decreases, the curves become higher. As you can see,
the last graph is for a location in the tropics. The graph shows a
discontinuity. You should therefore use the polar sun chart for the tropics.
The University of Oregon, Solar Radiation Monitoring Laboratory also
provides a program for producing polar sun charts. See
http://solardat.uoregon.edu/PolarSunChartProgram.html
Unfortunately these charts have South at the top of the chart, and are
therefore more useful for locations in the northern hemisphere.
Sample plots are given for locations in the northern hemisphere in Figure 18.

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Figure 16(a): Cylindrical Sun Chart – Melbourne, Standard Time,

June to December
Note different sign convention for Azimuth angle
Copyright 2003-2006, University of Oregon. All Rights Reserved.

Created by Frank Vignola of the Solar Radiation Monitoring Laboratory

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Figure 16(b): Cylindrical Sun Chart – Melbourne, Standard Time,

December to June
Note different sign convention for Azimuth angle


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Reykjavík, Iceland, Latitude 64° 4’ N New Delhi, India, Latitude 28° 37’ N
Prague, Czech Republic, Latitude 50° 5’ N Caracas, Venezuela, Latitude 10° 30’ N
(Cylindrical Sun Chart should not be used
in tropics.)
Figure 17: Cylindrical Sun Charts – Various Locations, Solar Time,

Note different scale convention for Azimuth angle


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Reykjavík, Iceland, Latitude 64° 4’ N New Delhi, India, Latitude 28° 37’ N
Prague, Czech Republic, Latitude 50° 5’ N Caracas, Venezuela, Latitude 10° 30’ N
Figure 18: Polar Sun Charts – Various Locations, Solar Time,
Copyright 2003-2005, University of Oregon. All rights reserved.

Created by Peter Harlan and Frank Vignola of Solar Radiation Monitoring Laboratory

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4 Shadow Angles
Horizontal and vertical shadow angles

Shadow angles are useful when determining the length of shadows cast by
shading devices.
The Horizontal Shadow Angle (HSA) can be used to determine the length of
shadow cast by vertical fins. This is shown in figure 19. Line OX is
perpendicular to the wall. Line OY is the projection of the sun’s rays on the
horizontal plane. Line ON is in the direction north.
HSA is the angle between the lines OX and OY. To calculate it, simply take
the difference between solar azimuth angle γs and the wall azimuth angle γ.
Sun S
Vertical
fin
Wall
Y
O
HSA γs
Figure 19 Horizontal Shadow Angle

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The Vertical Shadow Angle is used to determine the depth of the shadow
cast by a horizontal fin or overhang. This is shown in Figure 20.
The overhang casts a shadow on the wall (indicated on the figure). Point O
lies on the bottom edge of the shadow cast by the overhang. Point W lies
directly above point O on the bottom surface of the overhang. Line WZ is in
the direction perpendicular to the wall, and point Z lies at the bottom edge of
the overhang. Therefore line OZ lies in a vertical plane.
The solar altitude α is the angle between OS and OY.
The vertical shadow angle (VSA) is the angle between OZ and the line
perpendicular to the wall OX. It is given by:
⎛ tan α ⎞
VSA = tan −1 ⎜
⎜ cos ( HSA ) ⎟⎟
⎝ ⎠
The distance to point O can be determined using the HSA and the length of
the overhang.
Sun S
Overhang
Z
α Y
Wall
O VSA HSA
Figure 20 Vertical Shadow Angle

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In Figure 21 we see the shadow cast by a pole. Imagine a horizontal pole of

length a, which juts out from a vertical wall, and is perpendicular to the wall.
Imagine the pole and its shadow are within a rectangular box with sides of
length a, b and c as shown.
a
c pole
shadow
VSA
b
γs - γ = HSA
Figure 21 Shadow cast by a pole
The length of the shadow is thus b2 + c2
For the horizontal shadow angle we can write: cos(HSA) =

a
a2 + c2
For the vertical shadow angle we can write: tan (VSA) =

b
a
For the altitude angle we can write tan (α ) =

b
a2 + c2
tan (α )
Therefore tan (VSA) =
b
=
a cos(HSA)

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A calculator for vertical and horizontal shadow angles can be found at

http://www.geocities.com/asheshwor/solar5.htm
Visualising shadows cast by overhang

The website Sustainable by Design has a simulator at
http://www.susdesign.com/overhang/index.php
This can be used to show the shadow cast on a window by an overhang over
a day. The user can vary the dimensions, the window orientation, the
location and the time of the year.
The squ1.org website includes a simulation of the shadow cast over a day on
the solstices and equinoxes. See http://squ1.org/wiki/Shadow_Angles

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5 Solar Collector Angles
Angles defining the tilt and orientation of a given collector surface

So far we have calculated the angle between the sun’s rays and the horizontal
plane. However, solar collectors are usually not horizontal.
Figure 22
Consider a collector surface inclined at a tilt angle β to the horizontal as

shown in Figure 22.
• 0º ≤ β ≤ 90º for a collector surface facing towards the equator.
• β = 0º for a horizontal collector surface.
• β = 90º for a vertical collector surface.
To define the orientation of the collector surface, imagine the normal to the
collector surface projected onto the horizontal plane. The angle between this
projection and north, as shown in Figure 22, is called the surface azimuth
angle. (This is for the southern hemisphere. In the northern hemisphere it is
the angle between this projection and south.)

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The symbol for the surface azimuth angle is γ. The angle γ is positive in the
westerly direction, and negative in the easterly direction. If the collector
surface is oriented towards the equator, then γ = 0º.
Let θ be the angle of incidence of the radiation, that is, the angle between the
sun’s rays and the normal (i.e. the line perpendicular) to the collector surface.
The angle of incidence is determined as follows:

In the southern hemisphere: In the northern hemisphere:
cos θ = sin δ sin φ cos β cos θ = sin δ sin φ cos β

+ sin δ cos φ sin β cos γ − sin δ cos φ sin β cos γ
+ cos δ cos φ cos β cos ω + cos δ cos φ cos β cos ω
− cos δ sin φ sin β cos γ cos ω + cos δ sin φ sin β cos γ cos ω
+ cos δ sin β sin γ sin ω + cos δ sin β sin γ sin ω
…4.1
For ease of calculation, let us split this into the following:

A = sin δ sin φ cos β
B = sin δ cos φ sin β cos γ
C = cos δ cos φ cos β cos ω
D = cos δ sin φ sin β cos γ cos ω
E = cos δ sin β sin γ sin ω
Then: cos θ = A + B + C − D + E in the southern hemisphere
Or: cos θ = A − B + C + D + E in the northern hemisphere
A calculator to determine angle of incidence is available on the learning hub.
To ensure that collector receives as most of the radiation available, the

angle of incidence should be as low as possible, preferably less than 30º.
Indeed, the amount of direct radiation that is captured by the collector is
proportional to the cosine of the angle of incidence.
When the angle of incidence is 0º, the sun’s rays are
perpendicular to the collector. Therefore the collector receives the
maximum amount of radiation available. Note that cos 0º = 1
What if the angle of incidence is 30º? Now cos 30º = 0.866. This
means the collector receives 86.6% of the maximum available
radiation.

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Let us now consider some special cases.

• The collector surface is oriented towards the equator, and the tilt
angle equals the latitude. This is usually the optimum tilt and
orientation if you want to maximize the amount of solar radiation
received over a year. Hence γ = 0º, and β = φ in the northern
hemisphere, or β = –φ in the southern hemisphere.
In the northern hemisphere, equation 4.1 simplifies to:
cos θ = sin δ sin β cos β − sin δ cos β sin β + cos δ cos β cos β cos ω
+ cos δ sin β sin β cos ω
= 0 + cos δ cos ω(cos β cos β + sin β sin β )
= cos δ cos ω
… 4.2
• The collector surface is horizontal. Hence β = 0º.
Equation 4.1 simplifies to:

cos θ = sin δ sin φ + cos δ cos φ cos ω …4.3
Equation 4.3 is the same as equation 2.1. In this case, θ = θz, the solar
zenith angle.
Equations 4.2 and 4.3 also hold in the northern and southern
hemispheres.
Worked Example 7
Determine the angle of incidence of radiation on a collector surface located in
the following cities at 11 am (solar time) on July 31. The collector surface is
tilted 55° from the horizontal, and its orientation is 20° east of south for cities
in the northern hemisphere and 20° east of north for cities in the southern
hemisphere.
• Sydney, Australia (33° 50’ S; 151° 04’ E)
• Kingston Jamaica (17° 59’ N; 76° 49’ W)
• Madrid, Spain (40° 26’ N; 3° 42’ W)
Before we calculate the answers, let us try to guess the following. In which
location would the sun’s rays be closest to the normal to the collector
surface?
Note that the sun is in the eastern part of the sky at 11 am in all locations,
and the collector is oriented towards the east. So on this axis the collector is
pointing approximately in the correct direction.

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The collector is tilted at quite a steep angle (55° from horizontal). Hence, we
should look for a location where the sun is quite low in the sky.
July 31 is close to the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. Hence the
sun is quite high in the sky in Madrid. Kingston is in the tropics, so the sun
will also be high in the sky—perhaps even in the southern part of the sky.
Since July 31 is close to the winter solstice in the southern hemisphere, the
sun will be quite low in the sky in Sydney. In Sydney, at solar noon on July
31, the altitude of the sun is:
αs = 90º – δ + φ = 90º – 18.17º+ (–33.83º) = 38º.
Thus for a collector facing north oriented at 90º– 38º = 52º, the rays of the sun
would be normal to the surface at solar noon on July 31. This is very close to
our collector angle of 55º.
At 11am on July 31, the sun’s altitude is a little less than 38º. Thus we should
expect that in Sydney, the sun’s rays are approximately normal to the 55º
collector surface. Let us now confirm this.
Sydney
⎛ 284 + 212 ⎞
N = 212 ∴ δ = 23.45° × sin ⎜ 360 × ⎟ = 18.17°
⎝ 365 ⎠
φ= –33.83° β = 55° γ = –20° ω = –15°
A = sin 18.17° sin (− 33.83°) cos 55° = −0.09959
B = sin 18.17° cos(− 33.83°) sin 55° cos(− 20°) = 0.19940
C = cos18.17° cos(− 33.83°) cos 55° cos(− 15°) = 0.43728
D = cos18.17° sin (− 33.83°) sin 55° cos(− 20°) cos(− 15°) = −0.39330
E = cos18.17° sin 55° sin (− 20°) sin (− 15°) = 0.06890
Sydney is in the southern hemisphere, hence:
cos θ = A + B + C − D + E
= −0.09959 + 0.19940 + 0.43728 − (− 0.39330 ) + 0.06890 = 0.99929
θ = 2.2°

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Kingston
φ= 17.98° β = 55° γ = –20° ω = –15° δ = 18.17°
A = sin 18.17° sin 17.98° cos 55° = 0.05521
B = sin 18.17° cos17.98° sin 55° cos(− 20°) = 0.22833
C = cos18.17° cos 17.98° cos 55° cos(− 15°) = 0.50070
D = cos18.17° sin 17.98° sin 55° cos(− 20°) cos(− 15°) = 0.21807
E = cos18.17° sin 55° sin (− 20°) sin (− 15°) = 0.06890
Kingston is in the northern hemisphere, hence:
cos θ = A − B + C + D + E
= 0.05521 − 0.22833 + 0.50070 + 0.21807 + 0.06890 = 0.61455
θ = 52.1°
Madrid
φ= 40.43° β = 55° γ = –20° ω = –15° δ = 18.17°
A = sin 18.17° sin 40.43° cos 55° = 0.11600
B = sin 18.17° cos 40.43° sin 55° cos(− 20°) = 0.18272
C = cos18.17° cos 40.43° cos 55° cos(− 15°) = 0.40070
D = cos18.17° sin 40.43° sin 55° cos(− 20°) cos(− 15°) = 0.45814
E = cos18.17° sin 55° sin (− 20°) sin (− 15°) = 0.06890
Madrid is in the northern hemisphere, hence:
cos θ = A − B + C + D + E
= 0.11600 − 0.18272 + 0.40070 + 0.45814 + 0.06890 = 0.86102
θ = 30.6°
So in Sydney the sun’s rays are closest to normal to collector surface. In fact
the angle of incidence is only 2.2°, so the rays are almost normal to the
surface. This is in accordance with our estimation.
In Kingston, where the sun is approximately overhead, the sun’s rays strike
the collector surface quite obliquely. We would expect this also.

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Worked Example 8
Determine the angle of incidence of radiation on the collector surfaces
described in the previous example at 5.30 pm (solar time) on July 31. Note
that ω = 82.5°.
Sydney
First, check what time the sun sets. The hour angle at sunset is given by:
ωsunset = cos −1 (− tan φ ⋅ tan δ)
= cos −1 ( − tan [ −33.83°] ⋅ tan [ −18.17°]) = 77.3°
Hence the sun sets at about 5.09 pm in Sydney. So at 5.30 pm, no radiation
will be striking the collector surface.
Kingston
The sun has not set by 5.30 pm in Kingston. (How do we know this?)
Using equation 4.1, we get θ = 109.9°.
Madrid
The sun has not set by 5.30 pm in Madrid.
Using equation 4.1, we get θ = 102.4°.
Note that in both Madrid and Kingston the angle of incidence is over 90°.
This means that the sun’s rays are striking the back of the collector surface. The
back of the collector is usually insulation, rather than collector material.
Therefore the collector will not be collecting any of the solar radiation.

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Activity J
Angle of Incidence of Radiation

For the following questions use the angle of incidence
calculator on the learning hub.
1. Determine the angle of incidence of radiation on a
surface located in Sydney (33° 50’ S; 151° 04’ E) on the
following days and times. Assume that the surface is
tilted 20° from the horizontal, and its orientation is 12°
west of north. The times given are solar times.
▪ January 1st at 12 noon
▪ January 1st at 5 pm
▪ April 1st at 10 am.
2. Determine the angle of incidence of radiation on a
surface located in London (51° 30’ N; 0° 10’ W) on the
following days and times. Assume that the surface is
tilted 50° from the horizontal, and its orientation is 15°
west of south. The times given are solar times.
▪ January 1st at 12 noon
▪ January 1st at 5 pm
▪ April 1st at 10 am.
(Answers: Sydney: 9.67°, 67.1°, 38.5°; London; 27.8°, sun
has set, 41.4°)

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6 Solar Radiation Received
Solar Irradiance and Solar Irradiation

Outside the earth’s atmosphere, the rate per unit area at which solar
radiation received on a plane perpendicular to the sun’s rays is about 1367
W/m2. (This varies by about ±3% due to the elliptical orbit of the earth.) The
value of 1367 W/m2 is called the solar constant.
The solar irradiance is the rate at which solar energy strikes a surface per unit
area. Its units are W/m2. Obviously on the earth’s surface, the solar
irradiance will be less than the solar constant, as some of the radiation is
reflected, absorbed or scattered by the atmosphere. On a clear day with the
sun high in the sky and the surface perpendicular to sun’s rays, a typical
value for the solar irradiance is 1000 W/m2 or 1 kW/m2. The value of 1
kW/m2 is also called 1 Peak Sun.
The solar irradiation is the amount of solar energy which strikes a surface over
a period of time. Its units are J/m2, kJ/m2, MJ/m2, kWh/m2 or Peak Sun
Hours (PSH).
1 kWh/m2 = 3.6 MJ/m2 1 kWh/m2 = 1 PSH.
Note that solar irradiance is power per unit area, and solar irradiation is
energy per unit area.
It is useful to think of solar irradiation in both MJ/m2 and Peak Sun Hours.
▪ The unit of MJ/m2 is useful when we want to calculate how much
energy is available from the sun.
▪ Peak Sun Hours represents the equivalent number of hours per day
when solar irradiation 1000 W/m2 or 1 kW/m2. For example, if the
solar irradiation during a particular December day is equal to 6 peak
sun hours, this means that the solar energy received over the whole
day is equivalent to 6 hours of full sun (i.e. 1000 W/m2)
What are typical values of solar irradiance and solar irradiation for
Melbourne? The following are monthly averages for a horizontal surface
(taken from Table 2 and Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society,
Australian solar radiation data handbook (ASRDH) Edition 4, 2006). Note the
conversion: 1 kWh/m2 = 3.6 MJ/m2

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Horizontal Surface - Melbourne Mar Jun Sept Dec Year

Average solar irradiance at 12 noon
0.63 0.35 0.50 0.79 0.56
(1pm in summer) (kW/m2)
Average solar irradiation over one day
(MJ/m2) 16.3 6.1 12.9 23.5 14.8

(kWh/m2 or Peak Sun Hours) – divide 4.5 1.7 3.6 6.5 4.1
row above by 3.6
Note the difference between the values for winter and summer. Why is the
difference more marked for the solar irradiation?
Averages are useful to know, but how much variability is there in the solar
irradiation? Using data from the Australian solar radiation data handbook,
we can see the typical number of days per year where the total irradiance
reached a specified level. Two locations are shown: Melbourne; and Mildura
in northern Victoria (where a large-scale solar power station has been
proposed). We see that the solar irradiance can vary from around 1 to 36
MJ/m2
Solar irradiance levels in Melbourne

25
no. days per year
20
15
10
5
0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35
MJ/sq m over the day
Solar irradiance levels in Mildura (northern Victoria)

25
no. days per year
20
15
10
0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35
MJ/sq m over the day

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The Bureau of Meterology provides solar radiation maps for the whole of
Australia. You can find the most recent map at the Daily Solar Radiation
Map http://www.bom.gov.au/sat/solrad.shtml, and maps for selected
dates at the Global Solar Radiation Archive
http://www.bom.gov.au/nmoc/archives/Solar/index.shtml
Most solar collectors are not horizontal. Ideally they should be facing north
(if in the southern hemisphere) and tilted at the latitude angle. What then are
typical values of solar irradiance and solar irradiation for a collector tilted at
the latitude angle (37.82º) in Melbourne? The following values are taken from
Table 5 below.
Surface tilted at latitude angle (37.82º) - Mar Jun Sept Dec Year
Melbourne
Average solar irradiance at 12 noon
0.76 0.48 0.64 0.79 0.68
(1pm in summer) (kW/m2)
(MJ/m2) 19.7 9.8 16.3 21.9 14.8

(kWh/m2 or Peak Sun Hours) – divide 5.5 2.7 4.5 6.1 4.8
row above by 3.6
Here the difference between winter and summer is not so marked, and the
yearly averages are much higher.
Direct and Diffuse Radiation

The solar radiation striking the earth is composed of two parts:
• Direct Radiation (also called beam radiation)—the solar radiation
which has not been scattered. Therefore its rays are parallel
• Diffuse Radiation—the solar radiation which has been scattered by
the atmosphere.
The sum of the two is called the total radiation or the global radiation.
If the sun is obscured by clouds, then only diffuse radiation will reach the
surface of the earth. If the sun is not obscured, then both direct and diffuse
radiation will reach the earth. In this case, about 80% of the total radiation
received will be direct radiation.
A flat plate collector can make use of both direct and diffuse radiation.
However, a concentrating collector can make use of only the direct radiation
component.

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Radiation received on a collector surface

Typically the solar radiation is measured on a horizontal surface. However,
we usually want to know the radiation falling on a collector which is at a
known tilt angle and surface azimuth angle.
The diffuse radiation does vary with the collector tilt angle. However the
effect is small at low angles of tilt. A tilted surface will also receive some
radiation reflected from the ground. It is beyond the scope of this course to
determine the effect of tilt angle on the diffuse radiation. As long as the tilt
angle is not too high, it is reasonable to assume that the diffuse radiation
falling on a tilted surface is approximately the same as that on a horizontal
plane.
The direct radiation, however, varies with the angle of incidence of the sun’s
rays.
In Figure 23, the solar altitude angle is α. Three collectors are shown: one
normal to the suns’ rays, one horizontal, and one tilted at angle β.
Say that we know the direct irradiance falling on a plane normal to sun’s
rays. We call this G direct ,⊥
Let the direct irradiance falling on the collector surface be G direct ,C and the
angle of incidence of the sun’s rays is θ. Then G direct ,C = G direct ,⊥ cos θ
If the surface is horizontal, then the angle of incidence is θ = θz (the solar
zenith angle). If G direct , H = direct irradiance falling on the horizontal plane,
then G direct , H = Gdirect ,⊥ cos θ z

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α
Collector normal to sun’s rays.
Angle of incidence:
θ = 0°
sun’s
rays
Collector
Area = A
Area of
radiation Horizontal Collector
= A cos θ Angle of incidence:
θ = 90°– α = θz
Collector
Area = A
Area of
radiation Tilted Collector
= A cos θ Angle of incidence:
θ = 90°– α – β
β Collector
Area = A
Figure 23 Effect of Angle of Incidence

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Worked Example 9
The direct radiation measured on a horizontal surface at 1pm (solar time) on
March 1 in Melbourne is 500 W/m². Determine the direct radiation falling on
a collector that is normal to the sun’s rays. Determine the direct radiation
falling on a vertical wall that faces 40 degrees west of north.
Use equation 4.3 to obtain the angle of incidence for a horizontal surface.
cos θ = sin δ sin φ + cos δ cos φ cos ω You can also use the calculator on the
learning hub
δ = –8.29°; φ = –37.82°; ω = 15°
Therefore cos θ = sin (− 8.29°)sin (− 37.82°) + cos(− 8.29°) cos(− 37.82°) cos(15°)
θ = 32.49°
Direct radiation normal to sun’s rays = 50/(cos 32.49°) = 593 W/m2
For a west facing wall, the angle of incidence of the sun’s rays is found from
equation 4.1, or the calculator on the learning hub. The wall azimuth is 40°
and the angle of tilt is 90°.
The angle of incidence is θ = 59°. Therefore the direct radiation on this wall is
593 × (cos 59°) = 305 W/m2.
Activity K
Direct Radiation Falling on Tilted Surface

The direct radiation measured on a horizontal surface at
11 am (solar time) on February 1 in Sydney (33° 50’ S;
151° 04’ E) is 750 W/m².
▪ Determine the direct radiation falling on a plane normal
to the sun’s rays.
▪ Determine the direct radiation falling on a surface tilted
20° from the horizontal, and oriented 25° west of north.
▪ Determine the direct radiation falling on a north facing
vertical wall.
(Answers 804 W/m2; 762 W/m2; 211 W/m2)

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Air Mass
We use the term air mass as a measure of the distance through the
atmosphere that the sun’s rays travel to reach the surface of the earth.
Obviously, if the sun is low in the sky, the rays must travel through more of
the atmosphere than they would if the sun was high in the sky. Therefore the
air mass depends on the angle of incidence of the sun’s rays.
1
Referring to Figure 24, we see that Air Mass = = sec θ z
cos θ z
where θz = the solar zenith angle
The term Air Mass Zero (AM0) refers to zero atmosphere, that is, the
irradiance above the earth’s atmosphere.
The term Air Mass 1 (AM1) refers to when sec θz = 1, that is, the sun is
directly overhead.
The term Air Mass 2 (AM2) refers to when sec θz = 2, that is, θz = 60°.
Air mass changes with the time of day. A typical figure is Air Mass 1.5. This
value is often used when specifying the performance of photovoltaic panels.
Figure 24 Air Mass
Solar Radiation Data

To predict the performance of a solar collector at a given location, we need to
know the typical solar radiation for that location. Since the amount of
radiation received varies significantly due to cloud cover, it is useful to know
the average radiation received over a long period, say 10 years. Solar
radiation data is collected by a number of bodies, including the Bureau of
Meteorology.

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A useful reference for Australian solar radiation data is the following:

Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society, Australian solar radiation
data handbook (ASRDH) Edition 4, 2006.
The following tables are taken from this source.
Note that this is the type of data that solar designers encounter. You need to
be able to interpret and make use of this type of data.
Radiation on a Horizontal Plane

Table 2 shows the average total hourly irradiance on a horizontal plane for
each hour for each month of the year. The data is for Melbourne. The total
irradiance equals the sum of the direct irradiance and the diffuse irradiance.
The diffuse and direct components are shown in Tables 3 and 4.
Hour Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
5 1 2 3 1
6 41 11 1 1 17 56 69 16
7 162 101 43 10 1 3 34 114 178 200 70
8 307 251 172 96 39 15 19 58 147 255 319 344 168
9 452 410 318 225 137 94 104 172 277 392 452 491 294
10 594 555 451 346 241 186 202 285 385 502 569 612 411
11 722 672 550 425 317 263 284 360 460 590 674 720 503
12 801 751 612 477 349 295 321 394 504 628 735 777 554
13 826 772 629 474 345 286 316 393 505 625 738 787 558
14 785 729 584 428 301 250 282 352 462 577 679 737 514
15 689 637 497 342 222 179 207 280 379 481 576 636 427
16 561 504 368 229 124 94 121 178 266 357 449 508 313
17 401 341 222 100 33 19 34 71 137 215 295 364 186
18 234 173 77 13 1 1 6 30 79 145 204 80
19 80 40 6 9 30 68 20
20 4 4 1
Daily 24 21.4 16.3 11.4 7.6 6.1 6.8 9.2 12.9 17.4 21.2 23.5 14.8
Table 2 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance (W/sq.m.) and daily irradiation (MJ/sq.m.)
on a horizontal plane for each month. (Source: ASRDH)

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5 1 2 3
6 30 9 1 1 12 38 46 11
7 90 62 30 8 1 3 24 70 98 104 41
8 145 119 89 57 28 12 15 40 86 129 154 158 86
9 191 163 137 108 80 60 64 96 137 179 201 198 135
10 224 191 174 145 120 101 108 139 180 217 237 230 172
11 237 212 198 173 146 129 137 168 212 239 255 254 197
12 241 221 212 184 159 143 152 185 224 249 263 253 207
13 238 219 210 184 158 144 155 186 219 245 254 245 205
14 227 209 199 170 145 131 142 171 204 227 236 231 191
15 207 189 177 145 118 102 114 142 173 197 208 208 165
16 175 162 146 110 76 61 73 102 130 156 171 178 128
17 140 130 105 60 24 15 24 48 78 107 128 139 83
18 101 85 48 10 1 1 5 21 48 75 97 41
19 48 30 6 4 17 42 12
20 4 3 1
Daily 8.3 7.2 6.2 4.9 3.8 3.2 3.5 4.6 6.1 7.5 8.4 8.6 6
Table 3 Melbourne: Average diffuse hourly irradiance (W/sq.m.) and daily irradiation
(MJ/sq.m.) on a horizontal plane for each month. (Source: ASRDH)
Excerpts from the 'Australian Solar Radiation Data Handbook' (ASRDH) have been kindly authorized by its publisher, the
Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society (ANZSES). Copies of the ASRDH and its sister software AUSOLRAD are
available for purchase from ANZSES. Contact: www.anzses.org_,[email protected] or phone/fax (02) 9402 1638.
5 1 1
6 11 2 5 18 24 5
7 73 40 12 2 10 44 80 96 30
8 162 132 82 38 11 3 4 18 61 126 165 186 82
9 261 247 181 117 57 34 40 76 139 213 250 292 159
10 370 364 277 200 121 85 95 146 205 285 332 382 239
11 485 460 352 253 171 133 147 192 248 351 419 466 306
12 560 529 400 293 191 152 168 209 280 379 472 523 346
13 588 553 419 290 186 142 162 207 286 380 484 541 353
14 558 519 385 257 156 118 141 181 258 351 443 506 323
15 482 448 320 197 104 77 93 138 207 285 369 428 262
16 386 342 222 119 48 34 48 77 136 201 278 330 185
17 261 211 118 40 9 4 9 23 59 109 168 224 103
18 132 88 30 3 1 1 9 32 70 107 39
19 32 11 1 5 13 26 7
20 1 1
Daily 15.7 14.2 10.1 6.5 3.8 2.8 3.3 4.6 6.8 10 12.8 14.9 8.8
Table 4 Melbourne: Average direct beam hourly irradiance (W/sq.m.) and daily (MJ/sq.m.)
on a horizontal plane for each month. (Source: ASRDH)

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We would expect the irradiance falling on a horizontal plane to be

significantly less in winter for several reasons:
• The air mass is higher, so more of the radiation is reflected,
absorbed or scattered by the atmosphere.
• There is likely to be more cloud cover.
• The direct radiation strikes the collector surface more obliquely, so
less radiation strikes a given surface area.
It would be unusual to have a horizontal collector (unless you were located

near the equator) as the angle of incidence of the sun’s rays would be
unnecessarily high.
For a fixed collector to receive the most radiation over the year, the collector
should be tilted towards the equator and the angle of tilt should be equal to
the latitude. In Melbourne, that means the collector should be facing north
and tilted at 37.8°. Alternatively the collector could move and track the sun
so that it is always normal to the sun’s rays. This is called a sun-tracking
collector. A sun-tracking collector receives the maximum solar radiation at
any time.
Tables 5 and 6 show the total irradiance for a north-facing collector tilted at
the latitude angle, and a sun-tracking plane respectively. Figures 25 to 27
show the hourly irradiance over the year for a horizontal plane, a plane tilted
at collector angle, and a sun-tracking plane.
5 1 2 3
6 29 9 1 1 12 36 43 11
7 111 70 34 10 1 4 28 103 142 141 54
8 259 236 199 116 41 17 21 60 185 267 291 289 165
9 419 418 380 322 226 140 164 261 351 429 441 450 334
10 581 592 547 487 382 317 336 419 489 564 578 590 490
11 730 736 676 593 492 434 458 521 584 674 702 714 609
12 822 834 757 666 535 478 508 562 643 723 774 781 674
13 849 860 780 660 527 458 497 559 645 718 775 791 677
14 797 806 720 597 463 405 448 503 588 657 702 729 618
15 682 691 608 481 347 299 335 406 482 537 578 610 505
16 529 529 443 328 204 156 211 264 338 385 426 460 356
17 346 336 261 121 33 20 36 78 176 219 253 295 181
18 167 149 65 12 1 1 7 22 49 96 133 58
19 45 28 6 5 17 39 12
20 4 4 1
Daily 22.9 22.7 19.7 15.8 11.7 9.8 10.9 13.1 16.3 19.2 20.9 21.9 17.1
Table 5 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance (W/sq.m.) and daily irradiation
(MJ/sq.m.) on a north-facing plane tilted at latitude angle for each month. (Source: ASRDH)

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5 2 1 3 1
6 67 19 3 1 19 90 109 26
7 386 214 68 14 1 5 49 255 378 428 150
8 545 514 413 212 59 20 27 95 338 470 524 568 316
9 657 662 577 474 328 200 243 385 492 590 621 679 492
10 750 759 678 594 469 398 425 515 576 657 692 743 605
11 825 818 734 643 544 491 518 570 618 709 756 796 669
12 861 855 766 682 563 513 542 581 647 725 793 819 696
13 881 868 782 676 556 491 527 576 653 731 807 833 698
14 877 856 761 647 516 455 497 543 633 721 793 827 677
15 849 826 720 585 429 372 409 486 584 675 753 792 623
16 803 763 629 480 300 226 306 374 495 598 692 734 533
17 706 640 489 220 47 23 51 122 349 473 574 649 362
18 544 439 151 17 1 1 8 31 119 391 481 182
19 127 69 13 4 25 105 29
20 7 4 1
Daily 32.0 29.9 24.4 18.9 13.7 11.5 12.8 15.3 19.7 24.3 28.4 30.9 21.8
Table 6 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance (W/sq.m.) and daily irradiation
(MJ/sq.m.) on a sun tracking plane for each month. (Source: ASRDH)

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Average global hourly irradiance on a horizontal plane

900
800
700 Jan
Irradiance [W/sq.m]
Feb
600
Mar
500
Apr
400
May
300 Jun
200 Dec
100
0
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Hour
Figure 25 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance on a horizontal plane
Average global hourly irradiance on a plane inclined at latitude angle

900
800
700 Jan
Irradiance [W/sq.m]
Feb
600
Mar
500
Apr
400
May
300 Jun
200 Dec
100
0
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Hour
Figure 26 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance plane inclined at latitude angle
Average global hourly irradiance on a sun-tracking plane

900
800
700 Jan
Irradiance [W/sq.m]
600 Feb
Mar
500
Apr
400 May
300 Jun
Dec
200
100
0
5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Hour
Figure 27 Melbourne: Average total hourly irradiance on sun-tracking plane

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The total radiation over the day for these three cases is compared in table 6.
Month Total daily irradiation Total daily irradiation on Total daily irradiation on
on horizontal plane plane tilted at local latitude sun-tracking plane
January 24 22.9 32
February 21.4 22.7 29.9
March 16.3 19.7 24.4
April 11.4 15.8 18.9
May 7.6 11.7 13.7
June 6.1 9.8 11.5
July 6.8 10.9 12.8
August 9.2 13.1 15.3
September 12.9 16.3 19.7
October 17.4 19.2 24.3
November 21.2 20.9 28.4
December 23.5 21.9 30.9
Yearly 14.8 17.1 21.8
Table 6 Comparison of total daily irradiation (MJ/sq.m.) on a horizontal plane, a plane tilted at
local latitude and sun-tracking plane. (Source: ASRDH)
Excerpts from the 'Australian Solar Radiation Data Handbook' (ASRDH) have been kindly authorized by its publisher,
the Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society (ANZSES). Copies of the ASRDH and its sister software AUSOLRAD are
available for purchase from ANZSES. Contact: www.anzses.org_,[email protected] or phone/fax (02) 9402 1638
We can see that the radiation received on a sun-tracking plane is significantly

higher that for a collector tilted at the latitude angle. The horizontal plane is
the worst (except in the summer months when the sun is high in the sky
during the middle of the day).
Although a sun-tracking plane is clearly the best for maximising the amount
of radiation received, this method is not widely used for small-scale solar
collectors. A major disadvantage of a sun-tracking plane is that it has moving
parts. If these break down, the benefit is lost.
Typically a collector is inclined at a fixed angle. Typically the amount of

radiation received over the year will be a maximum if the collector is inclined
at about the angle of latitude (about 38° in Melbourne). But what if you want
to fix a solar collector on your roof and incline it at the same angle as the
roof? Roofs are typically inclined at an angle of between 20° and 30°. Will this
make much difference to the performance of the solar collector?
Table 7 shows the average irradiation for a north-facing solar collector (i.e.
collector azimuth angle = 0°) inclined at different angles. These are plotted in
Figure 28.

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0° 10° 20° 30° 40° 50° 60° 70° 80° 90°

Jan 23.9 24.4 24.4 23.8 22.6 20.9 18.7 16.2 13.4 10.5
Feb 21.3 22.5 23 23 22.5 21.4 19.8 17.7 15.2 12.4
Mar 16.2 17.7 18.9 19.5 19.7 19.4 18.6 17.4 15.7 13.7
Apr 11.3 12.9 14.3 15.3 15.9 16.2 16 15.4 14.5 13.2
May 7.5 8.9 10.2 11.1 11.8 12.2 12.4 12.2 11.7 10.9
Jun 6 7.2 8.3 9.3 9.9 10.4 10.6 10.5 10.1 9.5
Jul 6.7 8.1 9.3 10.3 11 11.4 11.6 11.5 11.1 10.4
Aug 9.1 10.5 11.7 12.6 13.2 13.5 13.5 13.1 12.4 11.4
Sep 12.9 14.3 15.3 16 16.4 16.3 15.8 15 13.8 12.3
Oct 17.3 18.4 19.1 19.4 19.1 18.5 17.3 15.8 13.9 11.8
Nov 21.1 21.8 22 21.6 20.7 19.3 17.6 15.4 13 10.4
Dec 23.4 23.7 23.6 22.8 21.5 19.7 17.6 15.1 12.4 9.7
Average 14.7 15.9 16.7 17.1 17.0 16.6 15.8 14.6 13.1 11.4
Table 7 Average daily total irradiation (MJ/sq.m.) on an inclined plane during January to
December– Melbourne. Collector Azimuth angle = 0°. (Source:ASRDH)
Excerpts from the 'Australian Solar Radiation Data Handbook' (ASRDH) have been kindly authorized by its publisher,
the Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society (ANZSES). Copies of the ASRDH and its sister software AUSOLRAD are
Average daily total irradiation on an inclined plane at an azimuth of

0 deg
30
0°
25 10°
Irradiation (MJ/sq.m)
20°
20
30°
40°
15
50°
10 60°
70°
5 80°
90°
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Figure 28 Average daily total irradiation on an inclined plane - Melbourne
We can see from the last row in Table 7 that the maximum energy collected
over a year in Melbourne occurs on a plane inclined at between 30° and 40°.
In general, a plane inclined at the angle of latitude should receive the
maximum amount of energy. However, even if the plane is inclined between
20° and 50° (in Melbourne), the energy collected is close to the maximum.
Of course we may not be looking for the maximum over the year. A collector
designed to collect the maximum over the year may collect too much energy

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in summer and not enough in winter. To maximise the amount of energy

collected in winter, we should incline the collector at an angle of between 50°
and 70°.
Effect of Surface Azimuth Angle and Tilt Angle

In the previous example, we looked at the monthly and annual radiation
received on a north-facing collector at different angles of tilt. What happens
if we wish to mount a solar collector on a roof that does not face north? The
following figures 29 and 30 show the combined effect of changing the angle
of tilt and the surface azimuth angle. Figure 29 shows how much radiation is
collected daily, averaged over the whole year in Melbourne. Figure 30 shows
how much is collected daily during June.
Let us say that our roof in Melbourne faces north-east, (i.e. 45° east of north),
and our collector is tilted at 20°. Over the year, we would collect on average
about 16 MJ daily per square metre of collector. In June, we would collect
only about 7.5 MJ per square metre of collector.
Similar graphs are shown for other cities in Australia in Figure 31. Latitudes
of each city are as follows:
City Latitude
Hobart 42° 52’
Melbourne 37° 49’
Sydney 33° 50’
Brisbane 27° 30’
Cairns 16° 51’

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Average annual daily total irradiation (MJ/sq.m):

Melbourne (latitude 37.8º)
80deg
Inclination
60deg
40deg
20deg
0deg
180º 210º 240º 270º 300º 330º 0º 30º 60º 90º 120º 150º
Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9
9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18
Figure 29 Effect of collector azimuth and angle of inclination on average daily total
irradiation on an inclined plane (average over year)- Melbourne
Average daily total irradiation (MJ/sq.m) in June:

Melbourne (latitude 37.8º)
80deg
Inclination
60deg
40deg
20deg
0deg
180º 210º 240º 270º 300º 330º 0º 30º 60º 90º 120º 150º
Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 9-10 10-11
Figure 30 Effect of collector azimuth and angle of inclination on average daily total
irradiation on an inclined plane in June- Melbourne

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Hobart yearly average (MJ/sq.m) Hobart in June (MJ/sq.m)

90
90
Inclination
60
Inclination
60
30
30
0
180
210
240
270
300
330
30
60
90
120
150
0
180
210
240
270
300
330
30
60
90
120
150
Azimuth
Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 9-10 10-11
9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17
Sydney yearly average (MJ/sq.m) Sydney in June (MJ/sq.m)

90 90
Inclination
Inclination
60 60
30 30
0 0
180
210
240
270
300
330
30
60
90
120
150
180
210
240
270
300
330
30
60
90
120
150
Azimuth Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 9-10 0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9
10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18 18-19 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15

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Brisbane yearly average (MJ/sq.m) Brisbane in June (MJ/sq.m)
80 80
Inclination
Inclination
60 60
40 40
20 20
0 0
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
320
340
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
320
340
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Azimuth Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8
8-9 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16
9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18 16-17 17-18 18-19
18-19 19-20 20-21
Cairns yearly average (MJ/sq.m) Cairns in June (MJ/sq.m)
90
Inclination
80
Inclination
60 60
30 40
20
0
0
0
180
210
240
270
300
330
30
60
90
120
150
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
320
340
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Azimuth Azimuth
0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9 0-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 6-7 7-8 8-9
9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 14-15 15-16 16-17 17-18
18-19 19-20 20-21 18-19 19-20 20-21
Figure 31 Effect of collector azimuth and angle of inclination on average daily total irradiation on an inclined plane – various cities

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Activity L
Using Solar Radiation Data

1. Using Melbourne solar radiation data, answer the
following. Determine the average total solar
irradiation (in MJ) falling on a 3 m² horizontal plane
in December between the hours of 10.30 am and
2.30 pm. If 75% of this energy could be captured
and used to heat water, determine how many litres of
water could be heated from 20 ºC to 60 ºC. Repeat
the calculation for June. (Before you calculate these,
estimate the amount—at least the order of magnitude
you expect.)
(Note: the heat Q (kJ) required to increase
temperature of a m kg of a substance by ΔT is Q =
mcΔT, where c (kJ/kg·K) is the specific heat capacity
of the substance. For water, c = 4.18 kJ/kg·K.)
Answers: 146 L; 53 L
2. Using Melbourne solar radiation data, answer the
following. Compare the total daily irradiation falling
on a 1m² sun-tracking plane for each month with the
total daily irradiation falling on a 1m² horizontal
surface, and a 1m² north-facing surface inclined at
20º, 30º and 40º.
Compare the three cases on a graph of total
irradiation versus month. Determine the total amount
of energy captured over a year for the three cases.
How much more energy is captured by the sun-
tracking plane compared with the tilted surface?
Answers. suntracking: 8.0 GJ over year, horizontal:
5.4 GJ over year, 20° tilt: 6.1 GJ over year. 30° tilt:
6.2 GJ over year, 40° tilt: 6.2 GJ over year.

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3. Consider a solar collector of area 3 m2 in Melbourne.

The collector faces 60° west of north and is tilted at
30°. How much water would you expect to heat
(from 20 °C to 60 °C) over a day in June? Assume
that the efficiency of the solar collector is 65%.
Answer: about 85 Litres

4. Compare the radiation falling on a solar collector
orientated at 45º west of north and tilted at 25º for
the cities of Hobart, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and
Cairns. Compare the average radiation over a year,
and the average radiation in winter.
5. A homeowner asks your advice on the orientation of
a solar collector for a hot water system. The roof
faces west. What angle of tilt would you recommend
if the home was in (a) Hobart; (b) Melbourne; (c)
Sydney, (d) Brisbane; (e) Cairns? Justify your
response.
6. You are consulted by someone who intends to install
photovoltaic panels on a wall (i.e. a vertical surface).
He/she is concerned only with the amount of energy
collected over a year. He/she asks your advice on the
orientation of the wall, in particular, is it necessary to
face the wall due north, and what is the effect of
orientating the wall in another direction? What would
your recommend if the wall was located in (a)
Hobart; (b) Melbourne; (c) Sydney, (d) Brisbane; (e)
Cairns?
7. You are asked, what is the difference between
installing a photovoltaic panel on a vertical surface
facing north, on a vertical surface facing west and a
horizontal surface? You are concerned only with the
amount of energy collected over a year. What would
your answer if the panel was to be installed in:
(a) Hobart; (b) Melbourne; (c) Sydney, (d) Brisbane;
(e) Cairns?

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RMIT Engineering

Solar Radiation Geometry

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 1

1. Latitude, Longitude, Solar Declination, Solar

Longitude and Latitude

Figure 1 Latitude and Longitude

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 2

• In the southern hemisphere, the latitudes run from 0º to 90º south,

City Latitude Longitude

Table 1 – Latitude and Longitude

The Effect of the Earth’s Movement on Solar Radiation

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 3

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 4

Figure 2 Revolution of the Earth about the Sun

Figure 3 Sun's Rays on June Solstice

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 5

Solar Declination Angle

Figure 4 Solar Declination Angle

The solar declination angle in given approximately by the following:

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 6

Solar Declination Angle

Figure 5 – Variation of Solar Declination Angle over year

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 7

Figure 6: Equation of Time

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 8

Worked Example 1: Relationship Between Solar Time and

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 9

0º meridian (passing 144.97ºE 150ºE

(Not to scale) Melbourne

0º meridian (passing 150ºE 151ºE

(Not to scale) 1º longitude

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 10

We also need to include the equation of time. (Assume no daylight saving

Buenos Aires – May 10

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 11

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 12

As we know, solar noon does not always correspond to standard noon, so we

Standard Time of Solar Noon

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 13

For the following locations and dates, determine the hour

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 14

Solar Altitude, Solar Azimuth and Solar Zenith

Figure 7 Solar Angles – Southern Hemisphere

Author: Andrea Bunting. Version: February 2010

Sustainable Energy Technologies 1 15

The solar azimuth angle is zero at solar noon.

Solar Azimuth – Which Quadrant?