This is presently the most-studied U.S. version of the space solar power concept. It’s called SPS-ALPHA (short for Solar Power Satellite via Arbitrarily Large PHased Array). It is part of NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program. Illustration via John Mankins/ Wired.
Researchers at Xidian University in the city Xi’an (in north China) say they have successfully passed a test of what they call:
… the world’s first full-link and full-system ground test system for space-based solar power.
Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI on Twitter), a journalist specializing in China’s space program, published the report. He wrote about it at SpaceNews on June 14, 2022. Jones reported that Xidian University carried out the space solar power test via a 246-foot-high (75-meter-high) steel structure located on the university’s south campus. The structure holds subsystems for testing the space-based solar power concept. According to a statement from Xidian University, the tower passed an “acceptance inspection” on June 5. That is, in fact, three years ahead of schedule. Jones reported via SpaceNews:
The facility is designed to collect solar energy and convert it into direct current electricity. This is to then be converted into microwaves for transmission via an antenna over a distance of 55 meters [180 feet].”
Just the start
Indeed, that’s a far cry from the distance needed to transmit solar power collected in Earth orbit to receivers on Earth’s surface. But, it’s a start. Duan Baoyan, a leading Chinese expert in space-based solar power, led the research, Jones said. In addition, Jones quoted Duan Baoyan as saying:
The research on space solar power [here at Xidian University] is currently a hot spot in the world.
However, Duan Baoyan also noted that the realization of space-based solar power would take “generations.”
This 246-foot-high (75-meter-high) steel structure hosts systems for testing space-based solar power. It’s located at Xidian University in Xi’an, north China. Image via Xidian University/ SpaceNews.
The long road to space solar power
Space-based solar power stems from an innovative idea in 1968 by aerospace engineer pioneer Peter Glaser. More specifically, he got the idea of collecting energy from sunlight in space and beaming it down to Earth via microwaves. Subsequently, the microwaves are then converted to electrical energy and supplied to earthly power grids. Many space enthusiasts got behind the idea in the 1970s, when physicist Gerard O’Neill at Princeton University incorporated Glaser’s concept into his vision for space colonies. In the 1970s, at the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California, scientists successfully conducted microwave power transmission experiments.
So, people have been talking about collecting solar power in space – and transmitting it via microwaves to Earth – for, literally, decades.
In addition, the idea is attractive as a way to provide abundant energy for …….
Source: https://earthsky.org/space/space-solar-power-system-test-successful-in-china/