Summer in North America brings to mind the power of the Sun and the fact that the many fans and air conditioners that bring relief from the “yellow dwarf” still rely on electricity from fossil fuels. But the solar industry is slowly increasing its share of electric capacity. How much do you know about this burgeoning industry? Take our quiz to find out.
1. In the first quarter of 2017, the United States installed 2,044 megawatts of solar photovoltaic cells to reach 44.7 gigawatts of installed capacity. How many U.S. homes could be powered by that amount of installed capacity?
A. 15.2 million
B. 8.7 million
C. 2.3 million
D. 5.6 million
2. Which solar industry company did not declare bankruptcy in the past two years?
A. Suniva
B. SunEdison
C. Sungevity
D. Sunrun
3. Which U.S. state is not one of the top 10 states with the most cumulative solar capacity?
A. New York
B. Utah
C. Texas
D. Florida
4. Which company is the biggest adopter of solar energy, measured by megawatts installed at its U.S. facilities?
A. Target
B. Walmart
C. FedEx
D. Apple
5. Approximately how many Americans work in the U.S. solar industry?
A. 560,000
B. 1 million
C. 260,000
D. 7.5 million
6. Which company is the top solar residential contractor?
A. SolarCity
B. Vivint Solar
C. Solar Universe
D. Sunnova
7. By 2020, solar is expected to deliver what share of total U.S. electrical generation?
A. 5%
B. 8%
C. 10%
D. 3%
8. How large a tax credit does the U.S. federal government offer for solar systems installed on residential and commercial properties?
A. 15%
B. 35%
C. 30%
D. 8%
Source: Solar Energy Industries Association
Answers: 1–B; 2–D; 3–D; 4–A; 5–C; 6–A; 7–D; 8–C