South Dakota Sunlight Hours & Renewable Energy Information
Quick Green Energy Summary for South Dakota
Sunlight
State Sunlight Rank: 11/50
Average Annual Sunlight Hours: 2900 hours
Clear Days: 104 days per year
Summer Peak Sun Hours: 5.91 hours per day
Winter Peak Sun Hours: 4.56 hours per day
Average Peak Sun Hours 
: 5.23 hours per day
: Wind
State Wind Rank : 10/50
Average Annual Wind Speed: 0.10 miles per hour
More Information on South Dakota Green Energy
South Dakota, perhaps surprisingly, ranks very high when it comes to average peak sun hours per day compared to other regions of the US. Maybe those presidents faces on Mount Rushmore knew what they were doing and were planning on soaking up some good sun for eternity.
Unfortunately though, South Dakota has been behind the curve when it comes to installed solar power capacity. Things may change soon though as technology increases and the practical use of solar power in this state becomes more legitimate.
South Dakota is also prime for wind power production, so the potential is there for this great state to do great things in renewable energy.
Using averages from a fixed solar panel, there are 5.23 hours of peak sun light across the state of South Dakota. This number would vary if you were using a 1-Axis or 2-Axis tilt panel.
Taking the average daily sun light hours works well for looking at long term calculations in your area. On a daily basis this number will fluctuate due to several outside variables. For example, on a cloudy day in the winter this number would be low, but on a sunny day in the summer this number could be much higher. Looking at an average will help you calculate and plan for the output and best hours of solar insolation you can expect from your solar panels in South Dakota throughout the year.