Page 374 - A Comprehensive Guide to Solar Energy Systems

Chapter 19 • Solar Panels in the Landscape 381

painted. The cabling is undergrounded as close to the panel as possible and is not nor-
mally a noticeable element.
When seen from the reverse side (from the north in the northern hemisphere), the
shaded undersides of solar panels are visible. When seen from the front or sides (south,
east, or west in the northern hemisphere), the solar panels can appear black or dark blue
from a distance, although they appear pale at an angle when there is some reflection (glare
is the term for reflection of ambient brightness, glint is reflection of direct sunlight). Set
on buildings, these colors can mimic smooth dark or gray roofing materials that can also
appear pale when wet or with a slight reflection of the sky. however, black, dark blues, and
grays are unfamiliar colors for large-scale areas of the landscape, particularly in verdant
countries. As a result, solar farms with large numbers of freestanding panels will stand out
in landscapes with fields of greens, yellows, or browns. Colors in the landscape change
with the seasons more than the variation in grays of solar panels in different light condi-
tions. Grazing fields will remain green (albeit different greens through the seasons), but
arable fields vary from brown/black/red when ploughed to fresh or rich greens during
growth and yellows or ochres during harvest. The flowering of crops such as oil seed rape
or flax can also create bright flushes of color in the landscape.
The color of a solar farm can therefore mark it out as different from its surroundings when
seen from a distance. There are comparisons that can be drawn to large industrial buildings,
or in an agricultural setting to glasshouses and polytunnels, or the increasing use of plastic
agricultural netting to protect young crops, which creates whole fields covered in white fab-
rics. These are noticeable in late spring, but are not in place all year round (Fig. 19.8).

FIGURE 19.8 Crop netting in Perthshire, UK. Photo: B. Dower (all rights reserved).