Metaverse experience at Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park where visitors can fly over the Park

The way people use the internet and look for experiences is being revolutionised by the metaverse. Numerous businesses in Dubai, including hotels and hospitals, use this innovative technology. Visitors at Dubai Electricity and Water Authority's (Dewa) Innovation Centre in Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park (MBR Solar Park) may now virtually fly above the park thanks to a metaverse experience.

With eight million photovoltaic (PV) panels covering 127 square kilometres, the six stages of the biggest single-site solar park in the world are producing clean power for hundreds of thousands of residences within the emirate. To make the MBR Solar Park more interactive and engaging for tourists, visitors may take advantage of this captivating metaverse experience by flying over it on the third level of the Innovation Centre. A holographic display at the center provides an overview of Dubai's Clean Energy Strategy's journey.

The Innovation Centre is open Saturday through Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., and closed on Fridays and public holidays. Entrance tickets cost Dh50 for adults and Dh30 for children under the age of eighteen, and tourists may purchase them online. Both the metaverse experience and the holographic spectacle cost Dh30.

An exhibition section of the Innovation Centre leads visitors on a trip covering Dewa's history, present-day solar and clean technology, and future directions.

World’s tallest solar tower:

The highest solar tower in the world, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, is encircled by 70,000 mirrors that reflect sunlight straight onto the tower, giving it the appearance and sensation of a real science fiction film. To generate 100 MW of green energy, the mirrors focus all of the sun's heat towards the top of the Central Tower. The Guinness World Record for highest concentrated solar power plant in the world is now held by this 264-meter structure. The record-holding tower provides the people with power through the use of steam turbines, molten salt, and other heating methods.

Lifting the molten salt to the top of the tower was one of the biggest problems the engineers had to overcome, and it took them five nonstop days to reach the milestone.

Largest thermal solar energy storage plant - The biggest thermal solar energy storage facility in the world, with a 3,599 MWth capacity, is located in Phase IV of the Mohammed bin Rashid Solar Park. The technology used in the facility is based on molten salt.

Noor Energy 1:

In 2018, construction on Noor Energy 1, the MBR Solar Park's fourth phase, began. It produces 250 MW in PV mode and 700 MW in CSP mode. Due to its biggest thermal energy storage facility and highest solar tower, the Noor Energy 1 project holds two Guinness World Records. Spread across 44 square kilometres, or 6,200 football fields, is the project.

In order to install the panels, 54 million cubic metres of sand were removed. Even after Covid-19 landed in the heart of the building project, not even a single day's work was paused.

Mohammed bin Rashid Solar Park’s clean energy:

• Phase 1 produces 13MW
• Phase II produces 200MW
• Phase III produces 800MW
• Phase IV produces 950MW
• Phase V produces 900MW
• Phase VI to produce 1,800 MW – under construction