Journal profile · Energy-Energy (miscellaneous)
Solar Compass
ISSN 2772-9400 · Elsevier · United Kingdom
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Solar Compass: fully open access; APC about USD 500; review about 130 days (submission to acceptance, publisher); 46 articles in 2025; indexed in Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Solar Compass is published by Elsevier. By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Systems, Photovoltaic Systems and Sustainability and Photovoltaic System Optimization Techniques, together about 33.9% of its articles. Its main subfields are Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
The International Solar Alliance and Elsevier have launched Solar Compass as an important tool to support the rapid increase in solar energy use around the world. The pace of this rapid increase must be such that the global community can achieve an ambitious goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.There is not one silver bullet to achieve this goal. It will require a multi-pronged approach on new, innovative and more efficient technologies, lower-cost manufacturing at scale, investments at scale to support entrepreneurship in new technologies, and financing at the consumer end to ensure adoption, while also taking care of the global societal issues to ensure access for all people of the world.Solar Compass will play a role in the global quest to achieve the target of net zero through the communication of information to stakeholders, and the general public. While the existing solar and renewable energy journals are doing a great job of publishing progress in long-term scientific research, and the renewable energy magazines are providing current news to the public, there is a serious gap of information needed to help accelerate the deployment of the most appropriate solar technologies in the world. Solar Compass is designed to fill this important gap. The journal will cover new technology developments ready for commercialization, policy and economic developments to increase access, manufacturing scale-up to reduce costs, successful case studies from around the world that could be replicated elsewhere, and appropriate technologies to support energy access for all.Solar Compass will be an Open Access journal, to provide access to all readers around the world. We welcome well-researched articles from authors around the world for submission to this journal. All articles will be peer reviewed before publication.
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Energy-Energy (miscellaneous)
Editor-in-chief Michael LeungPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named United States 7, India 5, Switzerland 4, United Arab Emirates 2, Hong Kong, China 1 (24 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic SystemsEnergy13.3%
- Photovoltaic Systems and SustainabilityEnvironmental Science12.2%
- Photovoltaic System Optimization TechniquesEnergy8.4%
- Hybrid Renewable Energy SystemsEnergy6.5%
- Power Systems and Renewable EnergyEnergy6.2%
- Solar Energy Systems and TechnologiesEngineering5.2%
- Integrated Energy Systems OptimizationEngineering4.9%
- Solar Radiation and PhotovoltaicsComputer Science4.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Not covered
Not covered by this edition.
CiteScore quartiles (Scopus, June 2026 release)
| Subject | Quartile | Rank | Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment | Q2 | 87/345 | 74th |
| Energy (miscellaneous) | Q2 | 31/106 | 71st |
Scopus ranks journals by CiteScore within each subject: the 75th percentile and above is Q1, then a quartile every 25 points. A different system from the CAS zones.LetPub
Database indexing
ScopusDOAJLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 9.2LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher)
- 9.2Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 1.25LetPub ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 1.63LetPub ·
- h-index
- 22OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 53OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 5.93OpenAlex ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 0%LetPub ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 172 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 34 | 34 | 509 |
| 2025 | 46 | 46 | 689 |
| 2024 | 37 | 37 | 389 |
| 2023 | 32 | 32 | 133 |
| 2022 | 22 | 22 | 11 |
| 2021 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
Publisher-reported review time from the journal's website
130 dayssubmission to acceptance · community reports about 10 weeks
The publisher's own definition applies; dates from this journal's articles in the last 24 months are not available yet, so the publisher's figure is used.
Figures by source
- Average review time (community reports)
- about 10 weeksLetPub ·
- Submission to first decision
- 13 daysPublisher website ·
- First decision after review
- 58 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to acceptance
- 130 daysPublisher website ·
- Acceptance to publication
- 1 daysPublisher website ·
- Submission to publication (journal-reported)
- about 20 weeksDOAJ ·
- Peer review
- Single anonymous peer reviewDOAJ
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Fully open accessDOAJ
Every article is open access; authors usually pay an article processing charge (APC).
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DOAJ | USD 500 | Yes | CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND | |
| OpenAlex | USD 500 / EUR 470 / GBP 400 / JPY 62,020 | — | — | |
| LetPub | USD 500 | Yes | — | |
| Publisher website | USD 500 | — | — |
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Open calls for papers1, by deadline
Publisher websiteWhat to prepare5 items from the author guidelines
- Abstract
- ≤ 250 words
- Keywords
- 1–7
- Reference style
- Numbered, in order of citation
- Highlights
- Optional
- Graphical abstract
- Optional
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteAI use, Authorship, Conflicts of interest, Publication ethics, License & copyright, Open access, Peer review, Preprints
- AI use Declaration of generative AI use
Authors must declare the use of generative AI tools in the manuscript preparation process upon submission of the paper.Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies (“AI tools”) have been rapidly adopted in research and scholarly publishing, offering significant benefits while requiring clear standards for responsible and transparent use.Authors preparing a manuscript for this journal may use AI tool…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Authorship Group authorship
Group authorship refers to the attribution of an article to a defined and named group of authors whose members have contributed to the work. Examples include research consortia, clinical trial groups, collaborative networks, task forces or working groups, expert panels or consensus groups, and participatory research groups. Group authorship must be declared on the title page at submission. When av…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Conflicts of interest Declaration of competing interests
All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence or bias their work. Examples of potential competing interests include:EmploymentConsultanciesStock ownershipHonorariaPaid expert testimonyPatent applications or registrationsGrants or any other fundingAffiliation with the journal as an Editor or Advisory Board …
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Publication ethics
Ethics in publishing Model summary
Authors must follow ethical guidelines stated in Elsevier's Publishing Ethics Policy.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- License & copyright License options
Open access license options Model summary
Authors will be offered open access user license options which will determine how you, and third parties, can reuse your open access article. We advise that you review these options and any funding body license requirements before selecting a license option.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Open access Open access
We refer you to our open access information page to learn about open access options for this journal.
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Peer review Peer review
Peer review type: single anonymized review process Model summary
This journal follows a single anonymized review process. Your submission will initially be assessed by our editors. If your submission is deemed suitable, it will typically be sent to be reviewed by a minimum of two reviewers for an independent expert assessment of the scientific quality. The decision as to whether your article is accepted or rejected for publication will be made by our editors.Re…
Source ↗Publisher website ·- Preprints Preprints
Preprint sharing allowed Model summary
Preprint sharingAuthors may share preprints in line with Elsevier's article sharing policy. Sharing preprints, such as on a preprint server, will not count as prior publication.We advise you to read our policy on multiple, redundant or concurrent publication.
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Before you submit
Five checks before submitting to Solar Compass
- 1ScopeRecent output centres on Solar Thermal and Photovoltaic Systems, Photovoltaic Systems and Sustainability.Check scope
- 2Article type and formatAbstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation.Author guidelines ↗
- 3English languagePolish grammar and academic style before you submit: it lowers the risk of rejection for language and improves your chances of acceptance.
- 4FeesUSD 500 (DOAJ), waivers availableFee details
- 5Expected review time130 days · Publisher-reported, submission to acceptance · community reports about 10 weeksReview data
The checks are built from this page's data.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Country or region
- United Kingdom
- Language
- English
- ISSN
- 2772-9400
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Author guidelines ↗DOAJ
- Aims & Scope ↗LetPub
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
- APC information ↗DOAJ
- Fee waivers ↗DOAJ
- Open access statement ↗DOAJ
- License & copyright ↗DOAJ
- Peer review process ↗DOAJ
- Editorial board ↗LetPub
- Plagiarism policy ↗DOAJ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Solar Compass
How long does peer review take at Solar Compass?
The publisher reports about 130 days (submission to acceptance); authors report an average review time of about 10 weeks. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
What are the manuscript requirements of Solar Compass?
According to the journal's author guidelines: Abstract: ≤ 250 words; Keywords: 1–7; Reference style: Numbered, in order of citation; Highlights: Optional; Graphical abstract: Optional. A model extracted these from the author guidelines and each was checked against the text; check the latest version on the journal's website before submitting.
Where are the editorial board members of Solar Compass based?
Of the 24 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are United States (7), India (5) and Switzerland (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Solar Compass?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Solar Compass is indexed in Scopus and DOAJ.
Is Solar Compass open access, and what is the APC?
Solar Compass is a fully open-access journal. APC about USD 500.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, Publisher website, OpenAlex, DOAJ; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .