Going up near the Save Mart Center

Even as we hear news of a massive solar plant being planned near Mendota, a smaller but still significant project is already under way at Fresno State.

Chevron Energy Solutions is building a parking structure topped with photovoltaic solar panels, which will be the largest of its kind at any U.S. university.

According to the university's Web site, photovoltaic panels installed atop 10 metal shelters will shade more than 700 parking spaces from the San Joaquin Valley sun and will convert the sun's energy into one megawatt of electricity. That's about 20% of the university's base demand and enough to power 1,000 homes. The $11.9-million project is scheduled for completion in the fall. (Photo courtesy of FresnoStateNews.com)

How cool is that -- literally! Shady parking spaces for 700 cars that can provide that much of the university's energy demand.

We think of solar energy as cutting edge technology, but it goes back farther than you might think.

Here's some background from the Solar FAQs Web site:

"The history of solar energy dates as far back as the Greek and Roman empires, during a time when myth and reality were intertwined. To the Greeks, Romans, and the Egyptians of that time, nature and the environment around them was seen as the home of the gods. The Egyptians followed the rising sun for guidance to the tombs of their kings and queens. Both the Greeks and the Egyptians used the sun as part of the mummification process in drying the dead bodies. Both the Egyptians and the Greeks used passive solar power to help them in their daily lives. The Greeks used a technique that incorporated mirrors reflecting the sun's light toward Roman ships prepared for war. The Greeks won that war due to the sun's resilient power.

Solar energy dates back to the times of ancient Egypt when Egyptians built rooms to store the energy from the sun."