A giant nuclear “head” en route to the nation's largest nuclear generator of power, outside of Phoenix, successfully navigated through Palm Springs late Thursday and early Friday morning, officials say.

It then parked outside Desert Hot Springs on Friday near Indian Canyon Drive and Dillon Road, according to Sgt. David Dreher of the California Highway Patrol.

Starting at 9 p.m. Friday two “pull” trucks and a “push” truck were expected to help haul the 150-ton, 19-foot-diameter replacement reactor cap up the steeper grades of State Highway 62, through the Morongo Basin, towards Twentynine Palms, Dreher said.

The load then will take U.S. Highway 95 to the California-Arizona border, he said.

It's expected to take three days to move the equipment from Banning to the Arizona border, said Betty Dayyo, spokeswoman for Arizona Public Service, the largest of seven co-owners of the Palo Verde plant.

It's the second of three replacement nuclear caps destined for the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station making their way through the Coachella Valley.

The first traveled through the area in June, and the final cap is expected to travel this summer, according to Dayyo.

Dreher estimated the load would travel about 10 mph up Highway 62, based on the weight and the grade.

The heads are not radioactive or harmful, Dayyo said. The plant produces power for 4 million customers in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, she said.