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Lecture 5& 6sun Orientation PDF

This document discusses solar geometry and sun orientation. It covers topics like the tilt of the Earth's axis and how it causes seasons, the altitude and declination angles of the sun, sun path diagrams including stereographic and cylindrical projections, and how to determine the sun's position, altitude, and azimuth at different times using these diagrams. Shadow angles are also introduced to describe the length of shadows on wall surfaces. Understanding solar geometry is important for architects to design buildings that optimize access to sunlight.

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Sanchita Jha
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170 views29 pages

Lecture 5& 6sun Orientation PDF

This document discusses solar geometry and sun orientation. It covers topics like the tilt of the Earth's axis and how it causes seasons, the altitude and declination angles of the sun, sun path diagrams including stereographic and cylindrical projections, and how to determine the sun's position, altitude, and azimuth at different times using these diagrams. Shadow angles are also introduced to describe the length of shadows on wall surfaces. Understanding solar geometry is important for architects to design buildings that optimize access to sunlight.

Uploaded by

Sanchita Jha
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CLIMATOLOGY III ( AR-209B)

Lecture – 5&6
SOLAR GEOMETRY & SUN ORIENTATION

BY-
Asst prof. Khurram Ali
Gateway College of architecture & Design
Sonipat, Haryana
Friday, October 07, 2016
SOLAR GEOMETRY
it is the mission of modern architecture to concern itself with the sun
-Le Corbusier
Sun Earth Relationship

• The earth receives almost all its energy from the Sun's radiation.

• Sun also has the most dominating influence on the changing climate of
various locations on Earth at different times of the year.

• The Earth rotates about on a fixed plane that is tilted 23.5° with respect to
its vertical axis around the sun.

• The earth's motion around the Sun is not perfect circle but is eccentric
Tilt Of The Earth’s Axis

When it’s summer in the Northern Hemisphere,


the North Pole is tilted toward the sun and the sun
shines more directly on the Northern Hemisphere
than it does at other times. The longest day of the
year is called the summer solstice (June 21 in the
Northern Hemisphere).

When it’s winter in the Northern Hemisphere, the


North Pole is tilted away from the sun, the sun shines
the least directly on the Northern Hemisphere, and the
days are shorter. The shortest day of the year is called
the winter solstice (December 21 in the Northern
Hemisphere).
Altitude Angle

The vertical angle at which the sun’s ray strike the earth is called the altitude angle and is
a function of the geographic latitude ,time of the year and time of the day.

The first effect of altitude angle is that at low angles the sun’s rays passes through more
of the atmosphere.
Altitude Angle

The second effect of the altitude angle is illustrated in the diagram. This law
says that a given beam of sunlight will illuminate a larger area as the sun gets
lower in the sky. This will distribute the amount of sunlight which will
weaken the sunlight on each square unit of land.
Astronomical Location of the Sun

Once the location of the site is determined, the position of the sun in relation to the site
has to be determined.

This geometrical relationship between the sun and the earth can be described by :-
•Latitude of the site
•Time of the year
•Time of the day
•Declination angle
•Altitude angle of the sun
•Azimuth angle of the sun

For each site, this relationship can be graphically represented through the sun-path
diagrams for a site.
Declination Angle

The angle between the earth-sun line and


the equatorial plane is called the declination
angle.

Declination changes with the date and is


independent of the location.

The declination is maximum (23.45) on the


summer/winter solstice and 0 on the
equinoxes.

The Declination Angles


Solar Altitude

• The solar altitude (y) is the vertical angle between the horizontal and the line
connecting to the sun.
• At sunset /sunrise altitude is 0 and is 90 degrees when the sun is at the zenith.
• The altitude relates to the latitude of the site, the declination angle and the hour
angle.
Solar Azimuths

• The azimuth angle (a) is the angle within the horizontal plane measured from
true South or North.
• The azimuth, when in reference to the South is usually called the bearing. If
the sun is East of South, the Bearing is positive, else the bearing is negative.

North = 00 or 3600, East = 900 , South = 1800,


West = 2700
Earth revolves around Sun

Sun revolves around earth


For the moment, this assumption makes it infinitely more convenient to understand
sun angles. To make things more convenient ,let us also assume a sky dome
,where a large clear plastic hemisphere is placed over the building site
Sky dome

• Sky dome is a imaginary sky dome placed over the building site.
• The point where these suns ray penetrate the sky dome every hour is marked .
• When all point for one day are connected ,we get a line on the sky dome called the
sun path.
• The part of the sky dome through which the most powerful sun rays enter is called
the Solar Window.

This figure shows the solar window which


assumed to begin at 9a.m and end at 3p.m
Sky dome

• Highest sun path is at the time of summer solstice


• Lowest sun path is at the time of winter solstice
• Middle sun path is at the time of equinox
Sun Path Diagram

At any time of the year and day, the exact location of the sun can be determined
through a combination of two values, the altitude and the azimuth.
The solar altitude, and the solar azimuth, can be read directly for any date of the
year and any hour of the day from the solar charts or sun path diagrams.
There are quite a few different types of sun-path diagrams, projection for
representing the sun’s apparent movement two dimensionally. however, we will
only examine two main forms. They are:-
•The Stereographic Diagrams
•Cylindrical Diagrams
The Stereographic Diagrams

Stereographic diagrams are used to represent the sun's changing


position in the sky throughout the day and year. The paths of the sun
at different times of the year can then be projected onto this flattened
hemisphere for any location on Earth.

Components of stereographic diagram are:-


•Azimuth Lines and Altitude Lines
•Date Lines and Hour Lines
•Reading the Sun Position
The Stereographic Diagrams

Find the altitude and azimuth of the sunƒon


February 21 at 9a.m at 35 0 latitude

Step 1 – location is about 350 ƒlatitude ,use


the sun path diagram of 360 latitude .

Step 2 – on the sun path diagram, find the


intersection of the sun path for 21 February
and 9 am.

ƒStep 3 – from the concentric circle the


altitude is found to be 27 0ƒ.

Step 4 – from the radial line the azimuth is


found to be 510 east of south.
The Stereographic Diagrams

Find the altitude and azimuth of the sunƒ


on February 21 at 9a.m at 35 0 latitude

Step 5 – on a plan of the building ,use


the azimuth angle to draw the left and
rightmost sun rays through the east and
south windows.

Step 6 – on the section through the east


window ,use the altitude angle to draw
the top and bottommost sun rays .

Step 7 – shade in the area between the


extreme sun rays at each window to
create a sunbeam.
Sun Path Diagram

• Various sun path model as shown to illustrate how sun angle vary with altitude
Cylindrical Sun Path Diagram

Another kind of Solar


Diagram, the cylindrical
diagram was developed by
Edward Mazria.
This chart is a vertical
projection of the sun's path
as seen from the earth.
It could be said that this
chart is an earth base view of
the sun's movement across
the sky dome.

Explanation of the Cylindrical of Sun


Path Diagram
Cylindrical Sun Path Diagram

The azimuth is plotted along the horizontal


axis while the altitude is plotted vertically.
Reading off positions is simply a matter of
reading off the two axis, as shown below.

Find the altitude and azimuth of the sunƒon


march 21 at 3p.m at 350 latitude

Step 1 – location is about 350 ƒlatitude ,use the


sun path diagram of 360 latitude .

Step 2 – find the intersection of the curve for


the march 21 and 3p.m.

ƒStep 3 – from the horizontal scale the azimuth


is found to be about 590ƒwest of south.

Step 4 – from the vertical scale the altitude is


found to be about 340above the horizontal.
Cylindrical Sun Path Diagram

Find the altitude and azimuth of the sunƒon


march 21 at 3p.m at 350 latitude

• Step 5 – on a plan of the building ,use


the azimuth angle to draw the left and
rightmost sun rays through the west and
south windows.

• Step 6 – on the section through the east


window ,use the altitude angle to draw
the top and bottom most sun rays .

• Step 7 – shade in the area between the


extreme sun rays at each window to
create a sunbeam.
.
Shadow Angles

Horizontal and vertical shadow angles describe the length of


shadows on any wall surface
Shadow Angle

Horizontal Shadow Angle Vertical Shadow Angle


• The horizontal shadow • The vertical shadow angle
angle(d) is the difference (t) characterizes the
between the wall azimuth horizontal shading device.
and the solar azimuth • It is measured on vertical
• It characterizes the vertical plane normal to the
shading device. elevation considered.
Using Sun Chart in Solar Design

• The sun chart is a useful design tool because it allows to locate


the sun’s position in the sky at any time of the day during any
time of the year.
• For usefulness in design we can plot the skyline other major
obstructions onto it, and utilize this information to locate and
orient buildings, windows and solar collectors.
• This tool can also be useful for locating greenhouses, planning
gardens and outdoor spaces .
• Finally by utilizing some simple overlays, we can use the sun
chart to design and optimize shading devices and plants so that
solar gain is realized in the winter when we want it, but
minimized or eliminated in the summer when we don’t want it.
BTU WINTER SUMMER EQUINOX

EAST 483 895 750

WEST 483 895 750

SOUTH 1400 60 886

NORTH 0 230 0

ROOF 880 2610 1744


28
Assignment

Explain the importance of incorporating solar geometry in


architectural design.

Support your answers with relevant examples and sketches.

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