LONDON — Japan is on track to beam solar power from space to Earth next year, two years after a similar feat was achieved by U.S. engineers.
The development marks an important step toward a possible space-based solar power station that could help wean the world off fossil fuels amid the intensifying battle against climate change.
From concept to reality Space-based solar power generation, first described in 1968 by former Apollo engineer Peter Glaser, has been considered science fiction.
Unlike most renewable power generation technologies used on Earth, including solar power and wind energy, space-based solar power could be available constantly, as it would not depend on weather and the time of the day.
Last year, a satellite built by Caltech engineers as part of the Space Solar Power Demonstrator mission beamed solar power from space for the first time.
Many more space-based solar power demonstration projects are in the pipeline.
However, not everyone is enthusiastic about the potential of space-based solar power.
For example, a gigawatt-scale spaceborne solar power station, such as the CASSIOPeiA concept plant proposed by the U.K. firm Space Solar, would need 68 Starships to get to space.
LONDON — Japan is expected to transmit solar energy from space to Earth in the upcoming year, following two years later when the U.S. s. engineers. A space-based solar power plant is a possibility, and this development is a significant step toward that goal as the fight against climate change intensifies and the world moves away from fossil fuels.
Adviser at Japan Space Systems, Koichi Ijichi outlined Japan’s path toward an orbital demonstration of a small space-based solar power plant that will wirelessly transmit energy from low Earth orbit to Earth during his speech at this week’s International Conference on Energy from Space.
During the conference, Ijichi stated, “It will be a small satellite, about 180 kilograms [400 pounds], that will transmit about 1 kilowatt of power from the altitude of 400 kilometers [250 miles].”.
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Depending on its size, a household appliance like a small dishwasher can run for approximately an hour on one kilowatt of power. As a result, the demonstration is far from the size needed for commercial application.
A battery will be charged by the spacecraft using an onboard photovoltaic panel measuring 22 square feet (2 square meters). Once the energy has been converted into microwaves, it will be directed toward an Earthly receiving antenna. The antenna elements will need to be spaced 3 miles (5 km) apart over a distance of approximately 25 miles (40 km) in order to allow enough energy to be transmitted due to the spacecraft’s high speed of 17,400 mph (28,000 km/h).
“It will only take a few minutes to transmit,” Ijichi predicted. However, it will take a few days for the battery to recharge once it is empty. ****.
The mission is scheduled for launch in 2025 as a component of the OHISAMA project, which is named after the sun in Japanese. In December, the researchers want to conduct a transmission from an aircraft, having previously shown off wireless transmission of solar power from a stationary source on the ground. It will beam down power over a distance of 3 to 4 miles (5 to 7 km) and the aircraft will be equipped with the same photovoltaic panel that will be flown on the spacecraft, according to Ijichi.
from an idea to a thing.
Space-based solar power generation was initially reported by a former Apollo engineer in 1968.
Peter Glaser is regarded as a science fiction author. Even though the technology is theoretically possible, it has been viewed as too expensive and impractical because it needs to assemble massive structures in orbit in order to generate the necessary power output.
However, the experts speaking at the conference claim that the urgency of decarbonizing the global power supply to halt climate change and recent technological advancements have changed that situation.
As space-based solar power is not dependent on the weather or the time of day, it has the potential to be a constant source of energy, unlike most renewable power generation technologies used on Earth, such as wind and solar power. At the moment, demand is met by nuclear power plants or gas- and coal-fired power plants after dusk or when the wind stops. Future technological advancements may contribute to a partial solution of the issue. To ensure a seamless carbon-neutral power supply by the middle of this century, as required by international climate change agreements, however, some pieces of the puzzle remain to be filled.
The experts at the conference stated that space-based solar power could become a reality due to advancements in robotic technologies, increases in wireless power transmission efficiency, and—most importantly—the arrival of SpaceX’s massive rocket Starship.
Solar power was beamed from space for the first time last year by a satellite developed by Caltech engineers as part of the Space Solar Power Demonstrator project. When the mission ended in January, it was hailed as a significant achievement.
There are numerous other space-based solar power demonstration projects planned. Space and research organizations worldwide, such as the European Space Agency, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, and the U.S., are studying the technology. s. The Air Force. Additionally, businesses and startups are creating concepts by utilizing Starship’s accessibility and the development of cutting-edge space robotics.
The potential of solar power derived from space, though, has not won over everyone. A NASA report that questioned the technology’s viability was published in January. In contrast to Earth-based solar or wind energy, which can produce energy for as little as 5 cents per kilowatt-hour, orbital power stations would require a great deal of energy and difficulty to build, launch, and assemble. As a result, the energy they produce would be too expensive.
Additionally, space-based solar power is far less environmentally friendly than Earth-based technologies due to the total carbon footprint of power production and the quantity of greenhouse gas emissions produced by rockets that launch those assemblies into orbit. A gigawatt-scale spaceborne solar power plant, for instance, like the CASSIOPeiA concept plant put forth by the U.S. K. To reach space, firm Space Solar would require 68 starships.
