I think Solar Energy Meteorologists have one of the toughest weather forecasting jobs out there!   Most of us are used to weather meteorologists forecasting the temperature and cloud cover for an entire city for a given range of time (morning, afternoon, evening, etc).  Imagine trying to forecast a “single cloud” over a small area for a given hour!   Amazing…but also a very challenging and a thrilling experience .

Solar Energy Meteorologist are important for Utilities and Operators.  Solar Energy meteorologists can save a solar operator or utility from potentially losing a lot of money by forecasting clouds/rain that may put a shadow on the solar panels and decrease its output.  Hour by hour forecasting for clouds or rain can be very difficult so Solar Energy meteorologists are constantly looking (not only at weather models) but at satellite  and Radar imagery to see if there’s anything imminent that may affect output. (Read more about why weather matters for Solar Power Plants)

Solar Energy meteorologists require intense database, statistical, and modeling skills.  Why?  Well one reason is because they have to micro-analyze the weather phenomenon of a very small local area over a period of time.   They have to collect,  analyze, model and present tons of meteorological data on an hourly basis.

And expect to answer a ton of questions from upper management such as, “What time of year is best performing for the solar plant?  What time of day?  Which hours? When do we generally see the most clouds in the winter, summer, spring, or fall?    The more data you have for your local area, the better the solar meteorologist can analyze and forecast it.

Also be prepared to travel to areas where your company or utility has solar panels.  This way you’ll get a feel for the topography and understand completely the dynamics of weather patterns that affect the area.  You’ll also set up any meteorological instruments necessary to collect data.

Who’s hiring Solar Energy Meteorologists?  I’ll tell you in my next post, and strategies on how to break through this challenging new sector of meteorology.