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Astrium Hopes To Test Grabbing Solar Energy From Orbit

Posted by timothy on from the don't-stand-underneath-when-they-fly-by dept.

goldaryn writes "Word from the BBC today is that Europe's biggest space company is seeking partners to help get a satellite-based solar power trial into orbit: 'EADS Astrium says the satellite system would collect the Sun's energy and transmit it to Earth via an infrared laser, to provide electricity. Space solar power has been talked about for more than 30 years as an attractive concept because it would be 'clean, inexhaustible, and available 24 hours a day.' However, there have always been question marks over its cost, efficiency and safety. But Astrium believes the technology is close to proving its maturity.'"

1 of 144 comments (clear)

  1. This idea seems really dumb for many reasons by rcb1974 · · Score: 1, Redundant
    Why this is still a dumb idea:
    1. Cost/kWh: From the article "We have reached a point where, in the next five years, we could build something which is in the order of 10-20 kW to transmit useful energy to the ground." Are you kidding me? 10-20kW? Pfft. That is very little power -- thats like powering 3 or 4 houses. The cost of the energy, materials, and time to design, build, launch, maintain (ground based monitoring, ground based photodiodes used to capture the laser light), a system like this would probably all cost at least 150 million dollars. I doubt a satellite like this would last more than 50 years. 150 million bucks for 10-20kW? What kind of a joke is that. Ground based solar/wind would me much more cost effective and just as clean.
    2. Space Garbage: Do we really need more junk in geosynchronous orbit? Launching satellites may create space junk.
    3. Safety: Do we really want a high powered laser beam (10-20kW) continuously aimed at earth? What happens if the devices on the satellite that control orientation fail? Then the beam might hit something else if it wasn't immediately powered off. I don't care what wavelength of light is used -- microwaves, infrared, UV, whatever -- if it is sufficiently concentrated by the time it reaches the Earth's surface, it can be harmful/unsafe. This technology has military applications.

    4. Venture Capitalists, don't let yourselves be fooled...