What’s that ‘bright flash’ in satellite image of SLO County? Weather Service has the answer
What’s that “bright flash” in a satellite image of San Luis Obispo County shared by the National Weather Service on Twitter?
NWS meteorologist Eric Boltt has the answer: It’s sunlight glinting off a solar energy farm on the eastern edge of the county.
The image was shot from by a geostationary operational environmental satellite, which circles the Earth, the Weather Service said on Twitter.
“You’ll see this when all the angles line up just right to the sensor on the satellite,” the agency said.
Satellites pick up solar farms in their photos on a daily basis, according to Boltt.
“It’s nothing unusual,” Boltt said. “The sun hits the solar panels and reflects back to the satellite.”
In this case, the facility catching the light is Topaz Solar Farm, considered one of the largest photovoltaic solar energy projects in the world.
Owned by BHE Renewables, the solar energy farm is located on the Carrizo Plain between Black Mountain and California Valley.
As of 2015, it could produce 550 megawatts of electricity, enough to power about 180,000 homes.
This story was originally published June 22, 2023 at 2:16 PM.
