<
https://www.ciphernews.com/articles/space-solar-inspires-hope-and-skepticism-as-it-inches-closer-to-reality/>
"Imagine you wake up and it’s raining outside. Your rooftop solar panels won’t
be much help today. But you flick your lights on and start the coffee anyway,
knowing the electricity reaching you through the grid is still powered by the
sun — except via solar panels out in space.
That’s the promise of space-based solar power: low-carbon, flexible and
reliable electricity that could provide clean power even when the sun is not
shining on Earth. It would act as a backup power source, like batteries, fossil
fuel or nuclear plants, while also complementing existing clean energy sources
in an energy-hungry world.
The idea of powering the planet with energy from space is revolutionary and
intriguing. Until recently, it seemed unfeasible.
Now, though, with the increasing impacts of climate change, growing energy
demand and a rapidly developing space industry, various international efforts
are emerging to make the concept, once confined to science fiction storylines,
a reality.
Indeed, setting up a solar farm in space is no easy feat: it would involve
assembling hundreds of thousands of photovoltaic modules as part of a mile-wide
structure thousands of miles away from Earth while also building a massive
receiver system on Earth in densely populated areas and integrating it into the
country’s grid system.
Space-based solar is a “disruptive technology on the cusp of being
commercialized,” said Martin Soltau, co-CEO of Space Solar, a leading company
in the field backed by the British government. It’s “really going to provide
that global-scale clean energy we need,” he said.
While Soltau’s enthusiasm is palpable, space-based solar power remains a hotly
debated technology, with critics dismayed by the expense and uncertainty.
“There have always been individuals in the space and energy community who are
passionately opposed to space solar power; they just hate the words,” said
former NASA physicist John Mankins, known as the godfather of space solar power
due to his nearly three decades of work in the field."
Via
Fix the News:
https://fixthenews.com/living-beings/
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
