In the mountain valleys of Nagano, a new kind of harvest is taking place. Farmers aren’t just pulling in sacks of rice—they’re also producing enough electricity to power dozens of homes. And they’re doing it on the same plot of land.
Perched three meters above the paddies, a shimmering array of dual-axis solar panels follows the sun’s path across the sky. This isn’t just a fixed frame bolted to a post—these panels tilt and pivot daily, even seasonally, fine-tuning the balance between feeding the plants below and feeding the grid above.
Continue reading… “Japan’s Rice Fields Just Became Power Plants—Without Sacrificing the Rice”