By Alana Semuels LA TIMES
The hundreds of glass mirrors break the dusty field in Lancaster, a sea of silver in a landscape of brown.
When switched on for the first time today at an opening gala with investors, local politicians and others, they'll make up the first operational solar tower energy facility in the United States.
They reflect the sun into a tower in the middle of the field, boiling water into steam that travels through pipes to power a turbine and create electricity. The plant, created by Pasadena company ESolar Inc., will be able to power 4,000 homes.
The strength of the small field of mirrors is surprising, but what might be more surprising is the technology's source. It was established by Pasadena incubator Idealab, a 1996 creation of entrepreneur Bill Gross. Gross, whom Time magazine once called the "man with a billion dollar brain," generated some big hits with GoTo.com, Internet Brands Inc. and Cooking.com, along with such misses as Eve.com and EToys.
ARTICLE CONTINUES HERE AT THE LA TIMES
MORE INFORMATION AT ESOLAR.COM
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