Solar Array Geometry

 by Mud Stuffin
Silver Springs Sunset.JPG
I looked and beheld a man with a measuring stick in his hand..
Zacharia 2:1

Its extremely difficult and dangerous to corectly align the mirror facets in a segmented solar reflector. Before starting construction, an array builder needs to know the formulas needed to get the mirrors at the proper angle to illuminate the receiver. Here's some basic geometry and trig that shows you how to do it.
 
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Step 1: Linear Optics

Array Geometry.JPG
The angle of incidence equals the angle of reflection. The rest is Euclidean plane geometry from high school. Dust off those old books....
....and you always wondered why they taught you that stuff!
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