Multiple studies demonstrate that solar heating and transient thermal gradients induce significant structural deflections, vibrations, and thermal stresses in spacecraft and space station components.
Paper [10] explicitly examines how solar loads on space station truss members cause structural deflections and thermal stresses. Paper [11] analyzes nonlinear vibrations and large elastic deformations induced by thermal gradients in flexible space structures (such as solar arrays). Both retrieved papers directly support the claim that solar heating causes significant structural flexing in space station architecture.