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joecool1029today at 12:26 AM1 replyview on HN

Maybe some WX nerds on HN can answer, but uh... would this help with reducing convection cells that appear above large parking lots? I can look at radarscope during summer and see them roiding up over really large parking lots in my region. Do solar panels help reduce this 'heat island' effect?


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Scoundrellertoday at 1:17 AM

Top of my head thought:

Depends on the colour of the cars and pavement. A PV will send ~20% of the light energy hitting it down the wire, the rest = heat.

PVs don’t really reflect back much light for obvious reasons.

The increased surface area might help it radiate more heat at night on a clear day, unless the panels are flat and then it’s no change really.

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