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Freeman [soylentnews.org] writes:

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/09/the-stormy-relationship-between-solar-power-and-the-weather/ [arstechnica.com]

Solar panels have a love-hate relationship with nature.They need to be placed in exposed locations that get a lot of sunlight, but cloudy weather obviously reduces their production. Less obviously, more extreme weather—from snowstorms to hurricanes—can damage or even break solar hardware altogether. New research [sciencedirect.com] performed by Sandia National Laboratories and published in Applied Energy showcases how weather events can reduce the amount of energy produced by the United States’ solar farms.
[...]
Unpublished NREL research also suggests ways in which solar panels can better withstand extreme weather, Walker said. Methods include water-tight enclosures, modules mounted on three rails (rather than two), thicker glass, wind-calming fences, marine-grade steel, and through-bolting (rather than clamps). “It turns out that clamps are the smoking gun in a lot of module liberations, as it’s called when a [photovoltaic] module blows off a rack,” he said.

Applied Energy, 2021. DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2021.117508 [sciencedirect.com] (About DOIs [arstechnica.com])

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