Solar irradiance at any distance calculator
Sunlight falls off with the square of distance, which is why outer-planet missions carry nuclear power instead of panels.
AU
m2
%
Solar irradiance
1361.00W/m2
- Panel output
- 4083.0
- Relative to Earth orbit
- 100.000 %
- Equilibrium temperature
- -18.57 degrees C
- Equilibrium temperature
- 254.58 K
- Panel area for one kilowatt
- 2.449 m2
Show the working
- Distance from the Sun = 1
- Panel area = 10
- Panel efficiency = 30
- Surface albedo = 0.3
- Solar irradiance = 1361 / 1^2 = 1361
- Panel output = 1361 * 10 * 30/100 = 4083
- Relative to Earth orbit = 1361 / 1361 * 100 = 100
- Equilibrium temperature = (1361 * (1 - 0.3) / (4 * sigmaSB))^(1/4) = 254.578
- Equilibrium temperature = 254.578 - 273.15 = -18.5719
- Panel area for one kilowatt = 1361 * 30/100 > 0 ? 1000 / (1361 * 30/100) : 0 = 2.449 18
Values are shown to six significant figures here; the arithmetic itself runs on exact fractions and is only rounded where a number is printed.
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The formula
- flux = 1361 W/m2 / (distance in AU)^2
- equilibrium temperature = (flux (1 - albedo) / 4 sigma)^(1/4)
The solar constant at 1 AU is 1361 W/m2. At Jupiter it is 50 W/m2 and at Neptune 1.5 W/m2.
The equilibrium temperature ignores any greenhouse effect and internal heat, so it reads low for Earth and Venus.
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