Science students in Vernon’s classes are building solar ovens as part of their current units.  

The astronomy students will be able to better understand how much energy is made by the sun. This project will demonstrate that even in the winter the energy from the sun is enough, even when collected across a small area, to cook food. It may be 150 million kilometers away, but it still gets it done. 

In the physics classes where the students are studying thermodynamics, they will be able to crudely calculate the amount of energy being received per square meter. Where they will then be able to roughly calculate the amount of energy that arrives from the sun each second for any area ranging in size from this campus up to the size of Texas. 

Vernon first did this lab in 1993 at Dalhart Junior High, but at the time the students only had a book and a science catalog to draw inspiration for their designs. He decided to put the lab aside to wait for another day when more information was available.  

Two years ago, while Vernon was in the process of installing solar panels on his house, he discovered the vast amount of information available. “In my mind the old lab from last century swam up to the surface of my memories again,” said Vernon. 

With a Google search today, the students were able to find nearly endless amounts of information, data and videos, a real feast of ideas to glean through to arrive at their oven designs. 

In groups, the students were given free rein to design their ovens. The ovens were vastly different, ranging in size and design. The students then took the ovens outside to test them out, by cooking mini sausages or melting chocolate. Within a couple of minutes, the ovens started melting the chocolates and heating the sausages. 

The next step in the project is to heat 20 grams of water for 10 minutes and calculate the energy input in Joules into their ovens.