Welcome to the
National Solar Radiation DatabaseWhat Is the NSRDB?
The National Solar Radiation Database (NSRDB) is a serially complete collection of hourly and half-hourly values of meteorological data and the three most common measurements of solar radiation: global horizontal, direct normal and diffuse horizontal irradiance.
It covers the United States and a growing subset of international locations. These data have been collected at a sufficient number of locations and temporal and spatial scales to accurately represent regional solar radiation climates. For a given location covered by the dataset, it is possible to see the amount of solar energy that was at a given time, and to predict the potential future availability of solar energy based on past conditions.
NSRDB Viewer
The NSRDB Viewer is a geospatial web application that allows for the visualization of and the ability to download NSRDB data.
Data & Applications
NSRDB data is publicly available at no cost. The data can be accessed via the NSRDB Viewer Application. Additionally NSRDB data are compatible with many system performance and economic models, including the following products created by NREL.
System Advisor Model
the System Advisor Model (SAM) is a free techno-economic software model that facilitates decision-making for people in the renewable energy industry.
PVWatts Calculator
Estimates the energy production and cost of energy of grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) energy systems throughout the world.
Supports and Contributors
Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot Initiative, the NSRDB is a widely used and relied-upon resource. The database is managed and updated using the latest methods of reserach by a specialized team of forecasters at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Data collection for the NSRDB is a collaborative effort. Contributors include:
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NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.
