We’ve already published some excellent, detailed articles on the basics of solar power and how solar cells work here on Solar Love. Those were written for us by an engineer studying solar energy in a master’s degree renewable energy program. But they were somewhat technical, and you still might be asking, “How does solar energy work?” Well, if you’re an audio/visual learner, perhaps this TED talk below on how solar power works will help you out.

Warning: yes, Dave Strenski (the speaker in this TED talk below) does get pretty technical. Quite frankly, you can’t get a good explanation of how solar power works without getting a bit technical. Still, I think this is pretty straightforward, and it was clearly aimed at the common person. Check it out:

So, now that you’ve watched the video, tell me, “how does solar energy work?” Don’t worry, I didn’t get it all on the first (or second) watch, either. (Perhaps because I was doing other things while watching it….) Watch it once or twice more. Don’t do anything else while watching it — don’t even surf Facebook! And I’m sure you’ll understand how solar power works.

Do you have any other good posts, TED talks, or other good videos on how solar energy works? Drop them in the comments! (Oh yeah, and don’t forget to share this with your friends, and really don’t forget to go solar if you haven’t yet!)