Some benefits of electric solar panels over other sources of energy would be that they are more cost efficient and using solar panels are better for the environment.
The sun. Or if you mean more specifically, in some cases the heat radiation from the sun is used to superheat something (water, salt) and that is used to create electricity.
It is clean, and there is not the permanent cost of fuel, or the electrical bill. However, this doesn't mean it is cheap; the initial investment is considerable. Currently, solar energy is mainly...