March 28, 2024

Soaking Up Sun in the Thar Desert: 2,245 Megawatts From Millions of Solar Photovoltaic Panels

Now millions of solar photovoltaic panels blanket Phalodi, providing a metallic appearance to landscapes that were brown and when sandy. Bhadla Solar Park spreads out throughout more than 5700 hectares (22 square miles), an area about one-third the size of Washington, D.C. The locations regularly clear skies imply sunshine is abundant, frequent dust storms pose an engineering challenge because they coat the panels with layers of minerals and sand that obstruct electrical energy production.

By Adam Voiland, NASA Earth Observatory
February 23, 2022

Bhadla Solar Park spreads across more than 5700 hectares (22 square miles), an area about one-third the size of Washington, D.C. It has an overall capacity of 2245 megawatts, amongst the biggest solar parks on the planet. Its presence just recently assisted Rajasthan overtake Karnataka as the Indian state with the biggest set up solar capability, according to Mercomm India.
Though the areas consistently clear skies imply sunlight is plentiful, regular dust storms pose an engineering challenge since they coat the panels with layers of minerals and sand that hinder electricity production. Some operators have actually chosen to release countless cleaning up robots on the panels, a strategy created to cut manual work needs and decrease the quantity of water needed for cleaning. Some current research recommends that Landsat images could help such systems by helping companies identify dust buildup and optimize cleaning operations.
NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey.

January 26, 2022
The Thar deserts abundance of open area and sunlight make it an ideal location for solar power.
Scorching temperature levels, sterile soils, minimal water materials, and regular wind storms make the Phalodi municipality in Indias Thar desert an inhospitable location to live. The abundance of open area and sunshine make this remote part of western Rajasthan an ideal place for harvesting solar power.
Construction of the Bhadla Solar Park, near Indias border with Pakistan, started to appear in satellite images in 2015. Now countless solar photovoltaic panels blanket Phalodi, providing a metal want to landscapes that were once sandy and brown. The Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8 captured this natural-color satellite image of the park on January 26, 2022.