Solar panels have begun to be installed on the White House's roof, the first time solar power will be used for a president's living quarters. The work makes good on a nearly three-year-old promise by the Obama administration to have panels on the White House by the spring of 2011.
President Jimmy Carter and President George W Bush both employed solar power, but never for the residence itself. Carter's panels were taken down by President Ronald Reagan.
A White House official would not disclose the share of the residence's power that solar would provide, citing security concerns. The official would say only that the panels were American-made.