Solar Radiation Metrics

Solar radiation is an important consideration in any building that strives for

energy efficiency. Solar radiation equates to heat if it is allowed into a
building or electricity if it is captured by a PV array.
Understanding the significance of solar radiation will help you to mass, orient
and program your building to capitalize on the solar radiation characteristics
of your site and climate. Knowing the metrics for solar radiation can help
with your analysis.
The intensity of the sun varies by the clarity of the atmosphere and the angle at which the sun
strikes a surface, called the "incident angle." The more perpendicular the sun's rays are to a
surface, the more heat and light energy.

Incident Solar Radiation

Incident solar radiation is the amount of solar radiation energy received on a given surface
during a given time. Values are given in units of energy per area (W/m2 or BTU/hr/ft2) and are
usually the single most valuable metric for early design studies. This is also sometimes called
insolation (INcident SOLlar radiation) and is sometimes quoted in terms of energy accumulated
per day or per year (kWh/m2/day or kWh/m2/yr).

Incident solar radiation, visualized in Autodesk Vasari

Incident solar radiation values are based on two primary components:

1. Direct radiation from the sun (direct beam radiation = Ib) which is always measured
perpendicular to the suns rays
2. Diffuse radiation that is both scattered by the clouds and atmosphere (diffuse sky radiation = Id)
and the ground in front of the surface (Ir). This is always measured on a horizontal surface.
Sky conditions affect the intensity and distribution of solar radiation. A cloudy sky reduces the
amount of direct beam radiation and increases the amount of diffuse sky radiation. For example a
clear sky will allow for direct light to travel from the sun directly to your site/building, whereas
a cloudy sky will filter the sunlight and scatter diffuse light around your location.
From the total energy of the sun, up to one third can be lost (reflected into space), about 20%
reaches the surface as diffuse radiation, and the rest reaches the surface as direct radiation
(source).
In addition to sunlight directly heating buildings, solar radiation also creates hotter weather and
affects humidity. This is one reason its included in diurnal weather charts.

Diurnal weather average charts show both direct and diffuse solar radiation. When
direct solar radiation varies a lot over the course of a year, its cloudy. You can see
that Copenhagen is cloudy in the winter because the absolute value of direct
radiation is much lower, and the proportion of diffuse to direct radiation is higher.

Absorbed, Transmitted, and Reflected Radiation

While incident solar radiation is just the amount of energy striking a given surface. It does not
necessarily tell you how much radiation is being absorbed into the faade of the building,

transmitted through a buildings windows, or reflected back. That depends on the material
properties and is governed by the following equation:
100% incident reflected = Absorbed + Transmitted

Analyzing Solar Radiation

Data for direct and diffuse solar radiation are included in the weather files that analysis software
uses.
The incident solar radiation values actually calculated and visualized within Revit, Vasari,
and Ecotect are based on your specific building geometry. They take the hourly direct and
diffuse radiation data from your weather data, your building geometry, and the time period of the
analysis into account. The results of the analysis are always over a given time period (often a
single hour) and are presented in Wh/m2 (or BTU/ft2). You can multiply by 317.15 to convert
from kWh/m2 to BTU/ft2.
The calculation used by the software includes shading from surrounding objects (Fshading), the
portion of the sky visible by the surface (Fsky), and the angle of incidence between the sun and
the face being analyzed (theta). Since incident solar radiation is just a measure of the amount of
sun hitting a surface, it does not depend on material properties.

The amount of sky visible by a surface (Fsky) is determined

by a shading mask placed over the sky dome (see more info)
The basic equation1 behind the values given in the software is below:
Incident solar radiation = (Ib* Fshading * cos(theta)) + (Id * Fsky)+ Ir
Where:
Ib = direct beam radiation, measured perpendicular to the sun
Id = diffuse sky radiation, measured on horizontal plane
Ir = radiation reflected from the ground
Fshading = shading factor (1 if a point is not shaded, 0 if a point is shaded, a percentage if measured

on a surface
Fsky = Visible sky factor (a percentage based on the shading mask)
Theta = angle of incidence between the sun and the face being analyzed
For more information, see:
NREL
Solar Radiation basics and Solar Radiation Components - Ecotect Natural Frequency Wiki
ECOTECT Help Files
Power from the Sun by by William Stine and Michael Geyer, chapter 2
Using Vasari & Revit, you cannot calculate absorbed, transmitted, and reflected radiation values
directly. However, based on the incident solar radiation values you can use design judgment and
manual calculations to help you design features like apertures, shading, and thermal mass.
Using Ecotect, given the material properties assigned to your walls, roof, and windows, there are
some built-in calculation capabilities for absorbed and transmitted radiation.

Time Periods for Solar Radiation Studies

You can choose different units for the simulation settings of solar radiation analysis. These
different units have strengths and weaknesses based on the analysis youre doing.

Peak

WHAT: The maximum value calculated during the study period.

WHEN: Often want to do this over a given day, month, or season to hone-in on the strongest
sun.
WHY: This metric is primarily used for sizing systems and HVAC equipment, and trying to
avoid extremes. Solar load is one of the primary components of cooling loads.
Cooling and Peak Solar Loads: What is the most solar gain youll experience on the hottest day
in the summer? Can your building handle these peak solar loads? Can you reduce these gains
with shading devices? As you reduce the peak cooling load, can you then reduce the HVAC
system size?
PV Panels: Finding the maximum amount of energy that you can expect to fall on the face of PV

panel can help size PV inverters. However, a rule of thumb is that the peak is about 1000 W/m2
for most of the world so this is often not done in practice.

Average

WHAT: The hourly average of values over the defined study period. This average is based only
on times when the sun is shining. Night time values are not included, even if you specify night
time hours.

WHEN: Determine average overall design conditions for a given month or season. Often
calculated only during the buildings operating hours.
WHY: This metric is primarily used for estimating energy use and gains over a defined time
period. (Average radiation energy * total hours = total energy).
Heating and Average Solar Loads: Estimate passive solar heating potential by studying the
average solar radiation during times of low temperatures (when heating is needed).
PV Panels and Passive Solar Heating: Find the total power available by multiplying the
average solar radiation by total hours. Then multiply this value by an assumed system efficiency
to get the total expected power output (for electricity generation, or heating).

Cumulative

WHAT: The total of all values calculated over a given time period.

WHEN: For whatever time period youre interested in, you can determine total energy
generation or savings. This method can be more accurate than using averages when studying
specific time periods.
WHY: Use when looking for the total energy that will be available over a given time period.
Passive Heating and Cooling: Learn the heating/cooling load impact over a given time period
and how much total energy will I have to manage. For example, whats the total energy you can
harvest for direct-gain system like a thermal mass wall?
PV Potential: This is the primary application for cumulative metrics. What is the total energy

that will fall on the face of a PV panel that will fall on a panel over a full year and over specific
time periods. Can you match building loads with this production potential?
Reference material can be provided for different locations based on cumulative radiation over the
course of a day. The chart below can help give a sense of scale for the amount of cumulative
solar radiation to expect over the course of a day for different conditions. See table below for to
give you a sense of scale for radiation on different faces of a building near and far from the
equator.
Location and Time
City
Far from equator

Anchorage, AK

Near equator

Miami, FL

Month
January
July
January
July

Cumulative incident solar radiation at a location both close to and far from the equator, for both
summer and winter.
SOURCE: NREL (1 and 2)

A moment in time
Looking at the solar radiation at a specific time2 is most valuable when youre getting an initial
understanding of the available energy on your site.
Using the sun path tool in conjunction with solar radiation results can be a very effective way to
understand both the suns path and the resulting solar energy striking a face of the building. Note
that when studying real-time radiation, the results are the same if you select Peak, Average, or
cumulative.
As a reference point, the average incident solar radiation across the entire earth is about 240
W/m.
1

The actual solar radiation algorithm computed by the software is based on the anisotropic
diffuse radiation model developed by Richard Perez, which is a statistical regression formula that
takes direct and diffuse radiation into account.
When analyzing a specific time (i.e. 10am on January 21st), the value thats presented is
actually the incident radiation over the course of an hour starting at that time (Wh/m2). It is not
truly instantaneous. However, the radiation intensity and sun position doesnt change that much
2

over the course of an hour. Also, the h unit cancels out, as it Wh/m2/(1 h), which is just W/m2.