A geothermal heat pump or ground source heat pump (GSHP) is a central heating and/or cooling system that
moves heat into or from the ground. It uses the earth as a heat source (in the winter) or a heat sink (in the summer). This design takes advantage of the moderate temperatures in the ground to boost efficiency and reduce the operational costs of heating and cooling systems. A GSHP system may be combined with solar heating to form a geo-solar system with even greater efficiency.
Geothermal heat pumps are also known by a variety of other names, including GeoExchange, earth-coupled, earth energy or water-source heat pumps. Like a refrigerator or air conditioner, these systems use a compressor to accomplish the transfer of heat energy.
