Engineering Marvel: Rjukan, Norway Sun Mirrors

Jeremiah Thomas, PE  (a.k.a. Bullfrog)  is part of ECP’s Engineering & Training Team.  He will be sharing engineering topics on our blog, so check back frequently for updates from Jeremiah.

The town of Rjukan, Norway is located about three hours west of Oslo. Rjukan is a beautiful mountain city positioned along the valley between two mountains. However, this creates a unique problem that affects human well-being – the town has no direct sunlight for about half the year.

Until recently, the most convenient way for locals to get sunlight was a cable car over 2,600 feet up the mountain, and the station at the top is home to one of the town’s best cafes.

In 2013, three large sun mirrors were built on the mountain north of Rjukan to reflect sunlight onto the town square. The mirrors are solar-powered to track the movement of the sun. Now, locals enjoy at least a couple of hours of sunlight daily in the middle of town to help fight the winter blues.