Italian village basks in winter sunlight thanks to giant mirror

0 Comments | AFP, December, 2006

ROME (AFP) — Sun-deprived humans might consider moving to the northern Italian village of Viganella, basking in sunlight thanks to a giant mirror. "I've waited for this moment for seven years," when an architect friend began pondering solutions for the sun-challenged hamlet nestled in the Ossola valley, mayor Pierfranco Midali said in remarks carried by Italy's ANSA news agency.

The village's 185 residents are plunged in chilly darkness during winter months as surrounding mountains cut off direct sunlight. The answer: A towering eight-by-five meter (26-by-16 feet) mirror installed on the flank of one bluff and computer-driven to follow the sun's path and cast its rays back on Viganella. "It wasn't easy, we had to find the proper material, learn abut the technology and...