Can Solar Panels Get Damaged From A Hail Storm?

If I am going to invest in a very expensive solar array system I want to know if it can be totally trashed overnight from a nasty hail storm. We usually get just pea size hail here in Colorado, but you never know.

I found a good real life example answer for this question on Yahoo Answers:

“I have 8 solar modules in my back yard and they went through a hail storm that did over $10,000 damage to my home and almost $8,000 to my truck. These modules have a 4 pound hail impact rating. I did have one small cheapie module that that was not hail rated and broke which the Ins. paid me $900.00 for.”

Here is another real life example:

“She also got hit by the hailstorm, and she said “My solar shingles fared better than the traditional shingles on my roof, which were installed at the same time.”

I did find a picture of a solar panel totally killed by hail.

Here is the standard hail test for solar panels. However after reading the scope of the test, it seems bogus because it doesn’t provide a pass or fail result or even the speed or size of the ice ball shot at the panel.

Next thing I want to research is how solar panels affect your home owners insurance in case they do get damaged from a hail storm.