Characteristics of a Rooftop Solar Panel Generator and the Governing Climatic Drivers

Australia is a signatory to the Paris Agreement, a legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted in December 2015. The accord culminated from two weeks of intensive multilateral negotiations at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21). While endorsed by 194 UN member states alongside the European Union, only Iran, Libya, and Yemen refrained from signing. Although the United States was an initial signatory, it remains the sole nation to have formally exited the pact via an executive order issued by President Trump in January 2025. The primary objective of the Paris Agreement is to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emission to stabilize global temperature increases well below 2 °C relative to pre-industrial baselines. Ultimately, the treaty aims to achieve global net-zero emissions by mid-century to restrict the temperature rise to 1.5 °C. To ensure compliance, the Agreement establishes a robust Transparency Framework for tracking, reviewing, and reporting the climate actions undertaken by signatory nations. Furthermore, developed economies committed to mobilizing a dedicated climate finance fund to assist developing nations in executing their respective mitigation and adaptation strategies (Framework Convention on Climate Change, 2015). To curb GHG emissions, most states in Australia have heavily prioritized the large-scale deployment of residential rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems. Approximately 31% to 32% of homes in the State of Victoria have implemented rooftop solar panel generation. Official data from Solar Victoria and the Australian Photovoltaic Institute indicates that PV penetration in Victoria has reached this mark, reflecting more than 850,000 rooftop solar systems installed across the state (Solar Victoria, 2026a). This paper examines the performance characteristics of these installations and develops a predictive model to assess their future generation capacity.