When it was built in the 1930s, the Hoover Dam was the largest hydroelectric dam ever constructed.
The dam, which impounds the Colorado River in the Black Canyon, is 726 feet tall, 660 feet wide at its base, and 1,244 feet wide at the top.
It forms Lake Mead, which is the largest reservoir in the United States.
Water flowing out of Lake Mead, which is the entire flow of the Colorado River, enters the dam.
The river's water reaches a speed of 85 miles per hour by the time it reaches its turbines.
The force of the water on the turbines generates tremendous amounts of electrical power.
There are a total of 17 hydroelectric generators at the Hoover.
The Hoover Dam's powerplant's generators first began transmitting electricity in 1936, reaching Los Angeles, California 266 miles to the southwest.
The money generated from electric power transmission permitted repayment of the 50-year construction loan for the dam.
Today, power generation pays for its yearly multi-million dollar maintenance budget.
Water releases from the Hoover are done in coordination with water demands downstream.
The hydroelectric power generated by Hoover Dam is allocated between Arizona, Nevada, ten cities in Southern California, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and Southern California Edison Company.
The latter two and the city of Los Angeles use nearly half of the hydroelectric power generated by the dam.
More than eight million visitors a year go to the Hoover.
At the dam, there is a Visitor Center and visitors can take tours of the powerplant and dam passageways.
The Hoover is located just 30 miles of southeast of Las Vegas.
A variety of companies offer convenient tours of the Hoover from Las Vegas.