Published hourly solar irradiance data are used to calculate the hourly clearness indices for three municipalities (Los Angles, Orlando and New York City). The clearness index method is then used to model the hourly total solar irradiance (summation of beam, diffuse and ground reflected) on an arbitrarily oriented surface. The orientations of solar panel for maximum annual solar irradiance for these locations are determined. It is shown that in some cases the southward solar panels do not yield maximum annual solar irradiance. Further, it is shown that using the hourly clearness index results in solar irradiance distribution that is not symmetric with respect to the solar noon.
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