• Energy Research

The HelioClim-1 database contains daily values of the solar radiation reaching the ground. This GEOSS (Global Earth Observation System of Systems) Data Collection of Open Resources for Everyone (Data-CORE) covers Europe, Africa and the Atlantic Ocean, from 1985 to 2005. It is freely accessible at no cost through the SoDa Service (www.soda-is.com). Several assessments of the HelioClim-1 data against measurements made in meteorological networks reveal that the HelioClim-1 database offers a reliable and accurate knowledge of the solar radiation and its daily, seasonal and annual variations over recent years. The HelioClim-1 data may help in qualifying in situ measurements and may supplement them, thus offering 21 years of accurate daily means of surface solar irradiance. Several published works benefited from openness, availability and accuracy of the HelioClim-1 database in various domains: oceanography, climate, energy production, life cycle analysis, agriculture, forestry, architecture, health and air quality. This demonstration of the benefit of the HelioClim-1 database draws attention to resources open to everyone such as those labeled GEOSS Data-CORE.

The HelioClim-1 database contains daily values of the solar radiation reaching the ground. This GEOSS (Global Earth Observation System of Systems) Data Collection of Open Resources for Everyone (Data-CORE) covers Europe, Africa and the Atlantic Ocean, from 1985 to 2005. It is freely accessible at no cost through the SoDa Service (www.soda-is.com). Several assessments of the HelioClim-1 data against measurements made in meteorological networks reveal that the HelioClim-1 database offers a reliable and accurate knowledge of the solar radiation and its daily, seasonal and annual variations over recent years. The HelioClim-1 data may help in qualifying in situ measurements and may supplement them, thus offering 21 years of accurate daily means of surface solar irradiance. Several published works benefited from openness, availability and accuracy of the HelioClim-1 database in various domains: oceanography, climate, energy production, life cycle analysis, agriculture, forestry, architecture, health and air quality. This demonstration of the benefit of the HelioClim-1 database draws attention to resources open to everyone such as those labeled GEOSS Data-CORE.

Photovoltaic (PV) technologies constitute a leading renewable energy source with a worldwide installed capacity of 135 GW in 2013 that may increase to nearly 4700 GW in 2050. To achieve this production level while minimizing environmental impacts, decision makers must rely at national level on relevant technological, economic and planning aspects which are highly geographically dependent. The access to performance data is a critical issue in the decision-making process and determines the successful development of efficient PV systems. For this reason, a new interactive tool is proposed here to provide the users with easy-to-use data and maps for the solar irradiation and screening level environmental results of representative PV technologies. The calculation procedures account for the geographic location and the PV system layout (installation, orientation and inclination angles). The tool has a worldwide coverage with a multi-criteria scope, both in terms of the numerous technological scenarios and of the wide range of environmental indicators. Moreover, the user is given the possibility to compare the PV environmental performance to the corresponding country electricity mix environmental footprint. 32nd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 2869-2873

Photovoltaic (PV) technologies constitute a leading renewable energy source with a worldwide installed capacity of 135 GW in 2013 that may increase to nearly 4700 GW in 2050. To achieve this production level while minimizing environmental impacts, decision makers must rely at national level on relevant technological, economic and planning aspects which are highly geographically dependent. The access to performance data is a critical issue in the decision-making process and determines the successful development of efficient PV systems. For this reason, a new interactive tool is proposed here to provide the users with easy-to-use data and maps for the solar irradiation and screening level environmental results of representative PV technologies. The calculation procedures account for the geographic location and the PV system layout (installation, orientation and inclination angles). The tool has a worldwide coverage with a multi-criteria scope, both in terms of the numerous technological scenarios and of the wide range of environmental indicators. Moreover, the user is given the possibility to compare the PV environmental performance to the corresponding country electricity mix environmental footprint. 32nd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition; 2869-2873

Databases of solar radiation values measured since 1985, which are of high interest in domains such as renewable energy, health, or architecture, are now freely available online.

Databases of solar radiation values measured since 1985, which are of high interest in domains such as renewable energy, health, or architecture, are now freely available online.

Abstract Information on solar radiation is a critical issue in several environmental domains. The means for accessing information suffer from severe drawbacks. The SoDa project was launched (2000–2003, IST program of the European Commission) to bring solutions by an efficient use of information and communication technologies. Integration of information sources of different natures was realized by the SoDa Intelligent System. Surveys of users demonstrated that large gains in terms of efficiency, costs, etc. were expected by engineers, companies, agencies and research institutes. The SoDa Service was created in 2003. During the past three years, it has undergone several improvements, including works on the user interface and on the presentation of the services, all aiming at consolidating it with respect to access by users. Promotion efforts were made in the media, including TV. The use of the SoDa Service is increasing from year to year: in 2003, 10,000 requests were satisfied, in 2004, 17,000 requests and 27,000 in 2005. This article presents the lessons learned from the past years and the perspectives of the SoDa Service. We discuss the sustainability of the SoDa Service, the technologies used and the approach to customers, in the perspective of building a B2B merchant site.