← Guides
Solar glossary
Solar terms without the technical fog.
Updated August 24, 2026
Use these short definitions while planning a system or reading a SunPlanner forecast.
Power and energy
- Watt
- A measure of power at a particular moment.
- Kilowatt
- One thousand watts. It is often used for larger appliances, inverters, and solar arrays.
- Watt-hour
- The energy used or produced when one watt continues for one hour.
- Kilowatt-hour
- One thousand watt-hours. Electric bills and larger daily energy totals often use this unit.
Solar setup
- Solar array
- The full group of solar panels working together in a system.
- Tilt
- The angle of a panel compared with a flat, horizontal surface.
- Azimuth
- The compass direction a panel faces.
- Solar irradiance
- The amount of sunlight energy reaching a surface at a given time.
- Peak sun hours
- A planning shorthand that turns a day's changing sunlight into an equivalent number of hours at strong sun.
Equipment and batteries
- Charge controller
- The equipment that manages power flowing from solar panels into a battery system.
- MPPT
- A charge-controller method that adjusts its electrical operating point to collect power efficiently from the panels.
- Inverter
- Equipment that changes battery power into the type of power used by common household appliances.
- Depth of discharge
- The portion of a battery's stored energy that has been used.
SunPlanner terms
- Calibration
- SunPlanner's adjustment based on usable production readings from your setup. It can begin after three usable readings.
- Forecast range
- A lower and upper planning range around the central solar estimate.
- Saved forecast
- The most recent forecast stored on the device. Its age may be shown when newer weather data cannot be loaded.
The bottom line
Put the terms into context.
See how SunPlanner turns setup details and weather into a planning forecast.
Available now on Google Play