High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Leonard "Lynn" L. Northrup Jr. (born March 18, 1918 in Houston, Texas) is a pioneer of the commercialization of solar thermal energy in the United States. Influenced by the work of Professor John Yellott, Dr. Maria Telkes and Harry Tabor, Northrup`s company designed, patented, developed and manufactured some of the first commercial solar water heaters, solar concentrators, solar powered air conditioning systems, solar power towers and photovoltaic thermal hybrid systems in the United States. The company he founded became part of ARCO Solar, which in turn became BP Solar, which became the largest solar energy company in the world. Northrup is a prolific inventor with 14 US patents.