We are pleased to republish below an article by James Wood, a British-Australian technologist and geopolitical analyst based in China, about exciting developments being made by Chinese scientists in the realm of space-based solar power (SBSP), supplementing the article we posted several weeks ago, Science fiction or science reality: China makes impressive progress towards space-based solar power, and providing an Australian perspective.
Describing the technology in easy-to-understand terms, James writes: “Imagine a kilometre-wide solar array orbiting Earth, harvesting limitless, uninterrupted solar energy and beaming it back home, day and night, without the interference of clouds or darkness… Unlike Earth-based solar farms, which suffer from weather conditions and night-time dips, a solar station in space captures continuous, unfiltered solar radiation, potentially more efficient than anything on the ground. The energy is then converted into microwaves and beamed down to terrestrial receiving stations, where it is transformed back into electricity and integrated into the grid.”
The author notes that China’s “state-driven, centralised approach allows for massive co-ordination and rapid development, unlike the fragmented, slow-moving private sector initiatives in the US”. Meanwhile Australia, “despite its vast potential, has been lagging in both space-based technology and terrestrial renewable energy advancements”. This is attributed to inadequate infrastructure and a lack of long-term strategic planning.
In this as in many other fields, China’s socialist system is proving its superiority over capitalism in terms of moving human understanding and capacity forward.
This article originally appeared on Pearls and Irritations.
China is making the once sci-fi dream of space-based solar power a reality and leaving the West scrambling to keep up. Imagine a kilometre-wide solar array orbiting Earth, harvesting limitless, uninterrupted solar energy and beaming it back home, day and night, without the interference of clouds or darkness. The China Academy of Space Technology is spearheading this geostationary solar power station and with a 2028-2050 roadmap, Beijing is set to redefine the global energy game.
In 2028, China plans to launch a low Earth orbit test satellite generating 10 kilowatts (kW) to trial microwave power transmission. By 2030, a 1-megawatt (MW) station is expected to be deployed in geostationary orbit at 36,000 km, where it will be assembled in space before beaming power back to Earth. By 2035, the system aims to scale up to 10 MW, proving its potential for mass energy production. By 2050, the goal is to have a commercially operated solar power plant in space generating two gigawatts (GW) of electricity with an approximately one-kilometre-wide antenna and complex solar cell array assembled in space.
Unlike Earth-based solar farms, which suffer from weather conditions and night-time dips, a solar station in space captures continuous, unfiltered solar radiation, potentially more efficient than anything on the ground. The energy is then converted into microwaves and beamed down to terrestrial receiving stations, where it is transformed back into electricity and integrated into the grid. The Bishan testing facility in Chongqing, backed by $15 million in funding, is already fine-tuning the radio wave transmission technology needed to transmit solar energy from orbit to Earth.
Continue reading China’s solar space station: A game-changer in renewable energy
