Historically Dunhuang, on the northeastern edge of the Taklimakan Desert, was a Han Dynasty commandery and a hub on the Silk Road. Today, it's the location of China's first 100-megawatt molten-salt tower solar thermal plant. With more than 12,000 heliostats, it stores heat and generates power around the clock, despite the constant menace of sandstorms. As a way of mitigating the threat, a greening project is underway, restoring the vegetation by planting saxaul and using precision drip irrigation. Also, the sand is being controlled through the creation of wind-sand corridors.