1/1
Swipe or click to see more
COURTESY PHOTO
Courtesy photo
Solar power helps illuminate an 8-foot-wide diorama of Santa's village in a display at Honolulu City Lights. Blue Planet Foundation, which created the display, says solar panels collect energy during the day and send it to a battery pack to store until nighttime.
Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
Santa’s home near Honolulu Hale has become energy-efficient with solar power.
An 8-foot-wide diorama of Santa’s home in a village made of some 40,000 Lego pieces is being lighted by a solar panel canopy at night during the 2011 Honolulu City Lights display.
The canopy was installed by Kaneohe-based Sunetric.
The nonprofit group Blue Planet Foundation, selected by the city to create a display, said that during the day the solar panels send energy to a battery pack for storage.
The battery pack lights the diorama at night.
The diorama between Honolulu Hale and the Mission Memorial Auditorium will be displayed on the lawn through Dec. 31.
Foundation spokeswomen Catharine Lo said the small-scale project combined creative design with clean energy technology, including LED lights with lower energy consumption and a longer life.
"We wanted to send a message that would resonate," she said.
Those building the display included the Lego Enthusiasts Association of Hawaii and the University of Hawaii’s Solar Decathlon Team Hawaii.
Lo said her group used a Facebook fundraising platform to collect about $4,800 in donations and also obtained financial help from Hawaii Energy and Walmart.
Blue Planet also received help from students at Blanche Pope Elementary in Waimanalo, St. Anthony in Kailua, Lanakila Baptist Elementary in Waipahu and the Farrington High School Law and Justice Academy in Kalihi.