It's early May and the weather is finally cooperating with my desire to go flying. I've been telling a college buddy of mine that I'd take him flying for months and just haven't gotten around to it. Yesterday however I finally made due on a promise.
Adam Goldstein and I flew out to Las Vegas. We left Whiteman airport (WHP) at about 0800 and arrived at Boulder City Airport (BVU) about 90 minutes later. That sure as hell beats the 3+ hour drive that is more typical of a trip to Vegas. Along the way, our route took us over the BrightSource Ivanpah solar power tower construction site an we snapped some photos. Then we flew over Nevada Solar One, and a PV plant located adjacent to it and snapped some more photos.
Adam Goldstein and I flew out to Las Vegas. We left Whiteman airport (WHP) at about 0800 and arrived at Boulder City Airport (BVU) about 90 minutes later. That sure as hell beats the 3+ hour drive that is more typical of a trip to Vegas. Along the way, our route took us over the BrightSource Ivanpah solar power tower construction site an we snapped some photos. Then we flew over Nevada Solar One, and a PV plant located adjacent to it and snapped some more photos.
Adam Goldstein -Looking terrified and hoping is mother never finds out about this.
When complete, the BrightSource Ivanpah facility will be the largest solar thermal power facility in the world. It has a nameplate rating of 396 MW -that's as large, or larger than many conventional coal, natural gas, or oil power plants.
Solar thermal power plants are a bit un-conventional in terms of generating solar power. When most of us think solar power, we think solar panels. Solar thermal power plants however use mirrors that reflect sunlight onto a boiler where steam is made. This steam is then passed through a conventional turbine -just as the steam made by burning fossil fuels other power plants. The only difference between the two is the source of the heat. Fossil fuel power plants burn fossil fuels, nuclear power plants use heat from fission, and solar thermal power plants use sunlight.
Solar thermal power plants are a bit un-conventional in terms of generating solar power. When most of us think solar power, we think solar panels. Solar thermal power plants however use mirrors that reflect sunlight onto a boiler where steam is made. This steam is then passed through a conventional turbine -just as the steam made by burning fossil fuels other power plants. The only difference between the two is the source of the heat. Fossil fuel power plants burn fossil fuels, nuclear power plants use heat from fission, and solar thermal power plants use sunlight.
Unit 1 of 3 at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating Station.
Possibly the most amazing thing about the BrightSource Ivanpah facility is the sheer size of it. The center portion of the picture at right is where a tower will be erected. This tower will support a boiler about 400 feet off the ground. The long edges of the solar field, where the arcs are, are over a km in length. The green in the background is a golf course, and this first third of the eventual 392 MW Ivanpah facility dwarfs it.
I'm currently an employee of eSolar, technically a competitor of BrightSource's, but let's face it, a BrightSource success is a solar thermal success and good for eSolar too. Let's hope they can keep this baby on budget.
I'm currently an employee of eSolar, technically a competitor of BrightSource's, but let's face it, a BrightSource success is a solar thermal success and good for eSolar too. Let's hope they can keep this baby on budget.
Nevada Solar One in foreground, PV facility in background.
On our way in to the Boulder City airport, we flew over Nevada Solar One -another solar thermal power plant. While still a solar-thermal power plant, the layout is different than the Ivanpah plant in that the boiler is not atop a tower. Instead, the mirrors are parabolic troughs. At the focus runs a pipe on which sunlight is concentrated. This pipe carries a heat transfer fluid that is heated and eventually used to produce steam that will pass through the steam turbine generator to make electricity. Again, the size is incredible.
Tributary of Grand Canyon.
After lunch in Boulder City, we flew out to the Grand Canyon. Navigating the airspace was a pain because of the number of helicopter flights from Vegas with tourists, but we made it and it was well worth it.
I wish we'd taken more photos, but truth be told, no photo could do it justice.
I wish we'd taken more photos, but truth be told, no photo could do it justice.
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