Ivanpah Valley — BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant construction site is bathed in the light from the rising sun as cranes loom over the floor of the Mojave Desert near the Nevada state line. Crews work to construct one of the giant "power towers."

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52813

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Ivanpah Valley — Dennis Schramm, the former National Park Service superintendent at the Mojave National Preserve, pauses for a moment near the edge of the mineral springs at the Desert Studies Center in Zzyzx, Calif. Before his retirement, Schramm said, he was troubled with locating solar plants like BrightSource in or near national parks.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52814

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Ivanpah Valley — A relocated desert tortoise takes a walk in the safety of its pen at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar construction site. Biologists have been rounding up the endangered tortoises, placing them in pens until they can be relocated.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52815

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Ivanpah Valley — Work begins on the large heliostat construction at BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant in the Mojave Desert.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52816

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Ivanpah Valley — Mirrors that will reflect the sun and generate power await installation at BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah 1 Solar Generation plant site in the Mojave Desert near the Nevada state line.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52817

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Ivanpah Valley — Workers drive the heliostat posts into the ground at BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah 1 solar power plant site in the Mojave Desert.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52818

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Ivanpah Valley — A male American kestrel watches from his perch atop a Mojave yucca in the Ivanpah Valley, future site of BrightSource Energy's solar power plant site.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52819

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Ivanpah Valley — Workers are dwarfed by the the lower third of the power tower structure under construction at BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant site.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52820

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Ivanpah Valley — A brittle spine flower emerges through the crusty surface of the desert floor in the Ivanpah Valley, where the BrightSource Energy solar power plant is being built.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52821

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Ivanpah Valley — Wind blows a cloud of dust across the desert floor near the Desert Studies Center in Zzyzx, Calif. The pristine quality of the Mojave is being challenged by nearby solar projects.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52822

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Ivanpah Valley — A ladybug explores a desert marigold on the outskirts of BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant in the Mojave Desert.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52823

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Ivanpah Valley — A side-blotched lizard stands in the safety of his terrain in the Ivanpah Valley, where the BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant will operate.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52824

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Ivanpah Valley — Drivers on northbound Interstate 15 head towards Las Vegas beneath the glowing sunset near BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah solar power plant.

PHOTOGRAPH BY: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

http://framework.latimes.com/?attachment_id=52825

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