Azimuth

Trade jargonOhio homeowner glossaryCC-BY-4.0

TL;DR

In solar design, azimuth is the compass direction a roof plane or array faces, measured in degrees clockwise from true north, so 180 degrees means due south, the production optimum in the northern hemisphere. Deviations cost less than intuition suggests: east or west faces at 90 or 270 degrees typically still yield 80 to 85 percent of a south face's annual output.

Definition

What it means

In solar design, azimuth is the compass direction a roof plane or array faces, measured in degrees clockwise from true north, so 180 degrees means due south, the production optimum in the northern hemisphere. Deviations cost less than intuition suggests: east or west faces at 90 or 270 degrees typically still yield 80 to 85 percent of a south face's annual output. Designers read it from satellite imagery or an on-roof compass corrected for magnetic declination, and it feeds the production model behind the proposal. Together with tilt and shading, it determines whether a roof plane is worth panelizing.

Category

Where it sits in the glossary

Azimuth is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.

Why this matters for Ohio homeowners

Why Ohio homeowners should know it

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License: CC-BY-4.0 — quote freely with attribution to ProFix Editorial Team / ProFix Directory.

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