The question of how to store energy generated from the sun for use at night has prevented solar power from becoming an alternative energy source. However, a ground breaking discovery may have overcome that storage problem, opening the door for solar energy on a grand scale.

Scientists at the Massachusetts institute of Technology, inspired by the principles of photosynthesis, have discovered a new process that might finally make solar energy affordable and easy to produce. The system is designed such that it uses solar energy to break water into hydrogen and oxygen, which can be stored for later use as fuel. The solar panels provide the electric current and the energy from that current is stored in the form of the hydrogen and oxygen rather than in a capacitor.

Storing the solar energy as uncombined hydrogen and oxygen is far easier and cheaper than storing the solar power as electrical energy in a capacitor. With the difficulty and expense of energy storage forming a major hurdle in the way of providing affordable solar power, this new technique may be the first step towards fulfilling significant energy demands with solar power, and considering the high price and limited availability of fossil fuels, along with the fact that 174 thousand trillion Watts of sunlight hit the Earth every day, a breakthrough in solar energy couldn’t come at a better time.

Of course, cars still can’t use hydrogen fuel generated by this process, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.