There’s a new tool to enable measuring the performance of solar energy panels as they are functioning in the field — not only in a laboratory. Fulton Schools electrical engineering doctoral student and graduate research assistant Alexander Killam developed the performance assessment technique, which record’s a solar panel’s voltage as a function of light intensity outdoors. Stuart Bowden, an associate research professor who leads the silicon section of ASU’s Solar Power Laboratory, says the method provides a data stream to show how solar panels degrade over time and in different environments. That could help the industry extend the lifespan of panels beyond 25 years. The method can track the performance of individual panels or an array of 20 up to 100 modules. See more news coverage in PV Magazine, Es De Latino, CitizenSide, California New Times, List Solar, Power Info Today, Novergy Solar