A landmark test of beaming solar power to Earth from a satellite has concluded successfully after a year-long mission.
The Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD-1) project launched in January 2023 with the principal objective of demonstrating the feasibility of harvesting the Sun’s energy and transmitting it wirelessly back to Earth - and one day being able to do so on a commercial scale. As the sun always shines in space, the concept could be an important source of consistent, reliable power.
Led by scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in the US, the mission completed all three of its primary experiments to test key technology for such an endeavour. They included a new origami-inspired solar panel structure, different cell designs, and a microwave transmitter.
Caltech said the success of the mission would “help chart the future of space solar power”, though conceded that a lot more research needs to be done before it becomes a reality.
“Solar power beamed from space at commercial rates, lighting the globe, is still a future prospect,” said Caltech president and professor of physics Thomas Rosenbaum. “But this critical mission demonstrated that it should be an achievable future.”
It's not just Caltech that's exploring such possibilities. Last year, Japanese space agency JAXA announced that it planned to set up a commercial-scale solar farm in space by 2025, while the European Space Agency is also aiming to set up a development project through its Solaris programme.
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