Deep in the Kubuqi desert in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, rows of blue solar panels glisten under the winter sun, converting sunlight into electricity that flows into thousands of households. Sandy and mostly devoid of life, the Kubuqi Desert in Inner Mongolia once had a reputation for being a “sea of death.”
Now, according to NASA tracking solar power developments in China, China’s dune fields have become a sea of solar energy, transformed by a surge of newly installed solar panels. The construction is part of China’s multiyear plan to build a “solar great wall” designed to generate enough energy to power Beijing. China is now the world’s biggest producer of solar power.
The project, expected to be finished in 2030, will be 400 kilometers (250 miles) long, 5 kilometers (3 miles) wide, and achieve a maximum generating capacity of 100 gigawatts. So far, Chinese officials say they have installed about 5.4 gigawatts. The US Geological Survey which is part of the Department of The Interior captured photos from 2017 to 2024 to show how quickly the plant has expanded.
The Kubuqi’s sunny weather, flat terrain, and proximity to industrial centers make it a desirable location for solar power generation. Panels are being installed in a long, narrow band of dunes just south of the Yellow River between the cities of Baotou and Bayannur. NASA’s OLI (Operational Land Imager) and OLI-2 on Landsat 8 and 9 captured this pair of images showing the expanding footprint of solar farms between December 2017 (left) and December 2024 (right).
The solar farm that resembles a galloping horse—Junma Solar Power Station—was completed in 2019, setting a Guinness world record for the largest image made of solar panels.
It generates approximately 2 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity each year, enough to meet the yearly electricity needs of 300,000 to 400,000 people.
Junma means “fine horse” in Mandarin.
In addition to generating power, planners hope that the installation will have other benefits. They think it may help curb desertification by preventing the movement of dunes and slowing winds. Also, the elevated panels create shade that slows evaporation and may make it easier to grow pasture grasses and other crops beneath them. Analysis of Landsat data indicates that solar projects have contributed to the greening of deserts in other parts of China in recent years.
Since 2024 China leads the world in solar energy production
As of June 2024, China led the world in operating solar farm capacity with 386,875 megawatts, representing about 51 percent of the global total, according to Global Energy Monitor’s Global Solar Power Tracker.
The United States ranks second with 79,364 megawatts (11 percent), followed by India with 53,114 megawatts (7 percent).
China’s solar growth has been particularly rapid during the past decade. Between 2017 and 2023, the country’s operational solar capacity surged by an average of 39,994 megawatts per year. The solar capacity of the United States expanded by an average of 8,137 megawatts over the same period.
Beneath the panels, different types of shrubs stand tall despite their dormant yellowed leaves, shielding the land from wind and sand.
“By the end of 2023, this one-gigawatt solar power project was successfully connected to the grid, transforming over 30,000 mu (about 2,000 hectares) of desert into a sea of solar blue, with thriving vegetation flourishing beneath the panels,” said Na Guiting, who is responsible for the solar great wall project.
The project Na is working on is the first phase of the Kubuqi Desert Ordos Central-Northern New Energy Base.
As one of China’s first large-scale renewable energy bases with a capacity exceeding 10 gigawatts, the base is set to develop eight gigawatts of solar power, four gigawatts of wind power, and four gigawatts of supporting coal power.
The electricity generated will be transmitted to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region through an integrated system combining solar, wind, coal, and energy storage, with 230,000 mu dedicated to photovoltaic sand control.
Once the project is completed, it will deliver approximately 40 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, with over 50 percent coming from clean energy sources, according to Na.
It is equivalent to saving about 6 million tonnes of standard coal and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by around 16 million tonnes each year, Na added.
The Kubuqi project exemplifies China’s broader effort to integrate renewable energy with ecological restoration. In the arid expanses of northern China, advanced technology is reshaping the battle against desertification, turning it into a narrative of resilience and renewal.
“I never would have imagined that as a farmer, I could find work in the sand dunes,” said Qin Zhaoping, a resident of Hengliang Township in Gansu’s Gulang County. His job involves adjusting the sprinkler irrigation systems beneath photovoltaic panels and tending to the thriving sand plants.
According to official data, 53 percent of China’s treatable desertified land has been restored, leading to a net reduction of approximately 4.33 million hectares of degraded land.
In November 2024, a three-gigawatt solar power station in Otog Front Banner of Ordos, built by CHN Energy Investment Group, was connected to the grid. It is currently the largest single-capacity solar power base built on a coal mining subsidence zone in China.
The power station is expected to generate 5.7 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, sufficient to meet the yearly energy needs of two million families.
