Task 16 provides access to comprehensive international studies and experiences with solar resources and forecasts. It supports different stakeholders from research, instrument manufacturers as well as private data providers and utilities.
Task 16 is a joint Task with the TCP SolarPACES (Task V). It collaborates also with the Solar Heating and Cooling (SHC) and with Wind Task 51.
As in the first two phases also for the 3rd phase the main result of Task is the update of the Solar Resource Handbook. This last version (4th edition) has been published in October 2024. It includes the major results of the collaboration during the years 2020 - 2024 (Sengupta et al., 2024a and Sengupta et al., 2024b).
The team worked on the following topics:
Four publications were published in 2025 —three within Task 16 and one in collaboration with Task 13 (Factsheet on soiling).
Additionally, six further scientific papers have been published in 2025:
Two workshops were held as side events for the Task workshops in spring and autumn:
At two internal workshops, the new work plan for the period of July 2026 – June 2029 has been developed. Task 16 members started also the activity to update and enhance Wikipedia entries regarding solar irradiance. Some updates were successful for:
The main goals of Task 16 are to lower barriers and costs of grid integration of PV and to lower planning and investment costs for PV by enhancing the quality of the forecasts and the resources assessments. Solar resources are introducing the highest share of uncertainty in yield assessments.
To reach this main goal the Task has the following objectives:
The scope of the work in Task 16 concentrates on meteorological and climatological topics needed to plan and run PV, solar thermal, concentrating solar power stations and buildings
The work programme of Task 16 addresses from scientific meteorological and climatological issues to high penetration and large scale PV in electricity networks, and also includes a strong focus on user needs. Dissemination and user interaction is foreseen in many different ways from workshops and webinars to paper and reports and online code archives or Wikipedia.
The work programme of the proposed Task 16 addresses on one side scientific meteorological and climatological issues to high penetration and large scale PV in electricity networks, but also includes a strong focus on user needs and for the first time a special dissemination subTask. Dissemination and user interaction are foreseen in many different ways from workshops and webinars to paper and reports.
The project requires the involvement of key players in solar resource assessment and forecasting at the scientific level (universities and research institutions) and commercial level (companies). A consortium of 51 institutions of 19 countries has been formed. This includes large science centres like DLR, NREL or Fraunhofer, universities like State Univ. of New York, Mines ParisTech or Univ. of Jaen, national weather services like DWD, BOM or DMI and data providers like Solargis, Vaisala or Meteotest.
