Photograph by Nigel Swales
Norway has some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world, but during the winter months many places in the northern Scandinavian country only get a few hours of sunlight each day.
To combat the depression that comes with not seeing much sunlight during winter months, the Norwegian town of Rjukan, about 160km west of Oslo, has installed three giant mirrors to reflect a beam of light onto the town’s square giving the illusion of a “second sun”.
The installation of the mirrors, called heliostats, came from Viganella, a town in northern Italy, which already has a similar system installed and was designed by artist Martin Andersen and reportedly cost 5 million NOK (£523,400).
Previously people had to get a cable car to the mountain tops to get some extra sunlight, but the town’s tourist board hopes that the sunlight in the town square will mean more community activities throughout the winter.
