It's a simple solution to an annoying problem. Much like with cars, dark colors on houses tend to take in more light, requiring more energy to cool down. Now, just imagine millions of houses with white roofs reflecting light back to the sun. Sound crazy? Well, it just might work. "This is something very simple that we can do immediately," says Energy Secretary Steven Chu. Hopefully, nobody spills anything on those roofs. source
It’d be a pretty good joke if it wasn’t true. The California Air Resources Board thinks that dark-colored cars have to work harder to stay cool, which means higher emissions. They’re looking to set a standard for 20% solar reflectivity by 2016, which black cars can’t pull off. So, if you’re in California, you may not be able to car that’s the same color as your soul in a few years. Sorry about that. source
