The Tennessee Solar Energy Association will present the 2011 Knoxville Solar Tour from 9:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., Saturday October 22, beginning at the Knoxville Station Transit Center.

The transit center is located at 301 E. Church Avenue.

The event opens with a Solar 101 presentation from University of Tennessee Professor Stephen Levy and a weatherization presentation from SEEED, a Knoxville-based sustainability organization.

Those will be followed by a bus tour visiting both commercial industries and residences that use solar technology and will include lunch from Wampler's Sausage and Efficient Energy of Tennessee.

Others who want to visit these homes and businesses already benefitting from solar technologies - but don't want to take the bus tour - can pick up maps for a self-guided tour at the Market Square Farmer's Market on Saturday morning.

The 2011 Knoxville Solar Tour is part of the American Solar Energy Society's (ASES) National Solar Tour, the largest solar event in the nation. This is the third year the tour has been held in Knoxville.

It gives the participants an opportunity to learn more about solar technology in addition to giving them a glimpse of how solar power is already changing the energy and sustainability landscape in the Knoxville area.

Among the organizations helping the Tennessee Solar Energy Association promote the solar tour are TVA, the Market Square Farmer's Market, the City of Knoxville, Knoxville Area Transit and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

For more information about the Knoxville Solar Tour please visit http://nationalsolartour.org/content/knoxville-solar-tour or call the Tennessee Solar Energy Association at 865-974-9218.