This is very interesting and exciting!

Reply to This is very interesting and exciting! on Fri, 24 Apr 2026 14:50:44 GMT

ameliasbrain@mstdn.ca — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 14:50:44 GMT

@lor If photovoltaic panels are operating efficiently, with the solar energy actually being turned into electricity that goes somewhere else, than they are not getting as hot as their colour would suggest.

(One issue with the study about storm clouds is that they were modelling the panels simply as dark areas in a desert of light surfaces, without factoring the actual conversion of energy.)

Reply to This is very interesting and exciting! on Fri, 24 Apr 2026 07:10:16 GMT

lor@goingdark.social — Fri, 24 Apr 2026 07:10:16 GMT

@AmeliasBrain @louisffourie

how? the panels collect heat all day and then at night release that heat - this is a heat island..

Reply to This is very interesting and exciting! on Sun, 12 Apr 2026 18:54:58 GMT

ameliasbrain@mstdn.ca — Sun, 12 Apr 2026 18:54:58 GMT

@louisffourie Interesting indeed! I've certainly thought about how rooftop solar panels can combat the urban heat island effect, and there's been lots of study of the shade benefit in grasslands, but I wouldn't have that it would make that much difference in a desert environment.

But that article is definitely a lot more fluff than substance. It seems to be based on two sources:

A news article in Nature, referencing a study that used weather models to estimate the impact of large-but-realistic (20km²) solar farms in certain places (like the Arabian peninsula or Baja peninsula) where there are moisture-rich winds above a desert.
A separate study on an actual solar installation in Nevada, which avoided disturbing the native soil. They found the studied plant increased there, compared to nearby control sites, in year 1. But it's likely due to shade from the panels slowing evaporation, not extra rainfall. Long-term impacts of shade are still uncertain.