There is an underlying problem somewhat specific to the solar energy field. Solar technology is very much still in the experimental stages.
This is not true at all. President Carter had solar panels installed on the White House more than 30 years ago. The technology is advancing. But this is true of all energy forms. Is natural gas still experimental because we've only been fracking for a few years? And contrary to your claims, Solyndra didn't fail because too many people wanted a warranty. It failed because, like with so many other businesses, they were undercut by the Chinese.
Natural gas is not experimental because while fracking is, we have been using natural gas as a byproduct from oil drilling for decades and
using natural gas as a power source is well understood. Fracking itself is still in the infant stages in some ways, but it appears to be working very well as we have
more natural gas on hand today than we have ever had..
Solyndra would have inevitably failed because they produced a type of thin film solar cell that is
not economically profitable compared to conventional crystalline silicon cells. The reason why you would want to use thin film cells is that crystalline silicon is really expensive, so much so that conventional solar cells are unable to compete with fossil fuels. Thin film cells are being developed in an effort to reduce the huge capital costs and truly make the solar industry viable instead of just a subsidy.
But thin film cells degrade--badly, often as much as
a 5% drop in efficiency within the first few months. Thin film cells in particular are experimental technologies beyond the degree that crystalline silicon cells are.
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