The world's largest solar furnace is located in Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via (simply known as Odeillo), a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales and Cerdagne near the Spanish border in the south of France. Some people may recognise it from photos in geography school textbooks and to anyone unfamiliar with it, a brief description and my photos from the site follow.
The site in the Pyrenees was chosen for the solar furnace because the area experiences clear skies of up to 300 days a year. A field of 63 flat mirrors automatically tracks the Sun and bounce its rays onto a large parabolic concave mirror on the side of the main building which then focuses this large amount of sunlight onto a much smaller area. This small area where the Sun's rays are concentrated reaches temperatures above 3,000°C (5,430°F). This area contains a crucible in which iron ore reaches a molten state for the production of steel. The production of steel requires very large amounts of energy. This is normally provided by electricity, gas or fossil fuels, but here, at Odeillo, the energy required relies on the power of the Sun and therefore a much greener solution for the production of steel is provided.
The idea of a solar furnace goes back many years and indeed, the ancient Greek/Latin term heliocaminus literally means "solar furnace". The current solar furnace here at Odeillo was constructed in 1970, although the first modern solar furnace is believed to have been built in 1949 by Professor Félix Trombe at nearby Mont Louis and is still in place today.
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