Integrating Weather Foundation Model and Satellite to Enable Fine-Grained Solar Irradiance Forecasting
Researchers have developed Baguan-solar, a novel framework that integrates a weather foundation model with satellite imagery for precise solar irradiance forecasting. This two-stage multimodal approach improves upon existing methods by combining the large-scale predictions of the Baguan model with high-resolution satellite data to capture fine-scale cloud dynamics. Tested over East Asia, Baguan-solar demonstrated a 16.08% reduction in RMSE compared to other leading forecasting systems. An operational version of this system has been supporting solar power forecasting in China since July 2025. AI
IMPACT Enhances solar energy grid integration by providing more accurate, kilometer-scale irradiance forecasts.