The stars are aligning — or should we say, the sun is aligning — on Tucson as a solar center. Take these three news events, all converging at about the same time:

This week Solon Corp. has a grand opening of its manufacturing plant, next week Global Solar will show off its newly-completed solar array, and last week Oro Valley Marketplace opened as the nation’s first LEED-certified retail center, according to Oro Valley Mayor Paul Loomis on page 6 of the special Residential Real Estate section in this issue.