LENA, Ill.- Northern Illinoisans will notice a persisting haze as wildfires continue to rage in the Western United States. The smoke remains in the upper atmosphere, but will continue to reduce air quality in most of the Midwest. Air quality levels are predicted to reach “moderate” levels, which may impact individuals with sensitive respiratory illnesses.
Image provided by NOAA
This uncommon pollutant in the Midwest may worry solar owners about their system’s ability to reach maximum efficiency. Take a look at the solar production comparison of a sunny week in September 2018, compared to this week in 2020:
Real-Time Monitoring Plaftform of a solar system located in Kent, IL offered by Stateline Solar.
So far, solar energy production doesn’t seem to be highly impacted by the current density of smoke in the upper atmosphere. This week’s solar production has mainly been impacted by rain, not haze. Tuesday, September 14, 2020, saw the highest concentration of smoke haze in the atmosphere, and only partially reduced solar production.
Stateline Solar provides all of their solar customers with SolarEdge monitoring, a platform that allows owners to see, in real time, what their system is producing. This helps solar owners understand how weather patterns (and pollution like wildfire smoke) affect their energy production.