ROME — The first solar panels were installed Monday on top of the papal audience hall at Vatican City.
Workers began putting photovoltaic cells on the roof of the hall to convert sunlight into electricity. In sunny Rome, engineers say the cells will produce enough electricity to illuminate, heat or cool the hall.
The hall is used for weekly papal audiences during winter and other times of year when the weather is bad.
Pope Benedict XVI's has made conserving resources an important concern of his papacy.