Today marks the official launch of Ivanpah, the world's largest solar energy power plant. The plant, located just southwest of Las Vegas in the vacinity of Nipton, has been the subject of both praise and criticism along the course of its development; as of today, it is generating in large excess over its demand as part of California's power grid.

Gizmodo discusses the story posted on NRG:

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG), through its wholly owned subsidiary NRG Solar, LLC, today announced that the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System is now operational and delivering solar electricity to California customers. At full capacity, the facility’s trio of 450-foot high towers produces a gross total of 392 megawatts (MW) of solar power, enough electricity to provide 140,000 California homes with clean energy and avoid 400,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, equal to removing 72,000 vehicles off the road.

Fans of Fallout: New Vegas will recognize the developing Ivanpah power plant as the inspiration for the game's location, "Helios One," a functional solar power plant in the Mojave Wasteland. While we usually have mixed feelings about Fallout predictions becoming reality, this is a rather positive development.

You can read more about it and view photos at Gizmodo or go directly to NRG's release article. Also, you can follow the plant's demand-vs.-supply in real time here.

Spotted @ Gizmodo