Passive cooling, also called natural cooling, is a passive solar energy technique that allows or augments the natural movement of cooler air from exterior, shaded areas of a building through or around a building. Key concepts are:

 

Locate windows in the upper floor of the building so that this space is solar-heated during the warm season open the windows when building cooling is needed

Allow fresh, cooler air to enter the building through the bottom floor; this air may pass through a duct in the ground so that it is further cooled

Close other windows in the building so that only cooler air from the lower level enters the building

 

The heated air in the top of the building is naturally drawn outside and replaced with cooler air in the lower portion of the house. Essentially this is a chimney effect in the building.