2023-07-05 23:00:21
Space manufacturing startup Orbital Composites and space energy company Virtus Solis have announced plans for a massive space solar energy station. At the Space Energy Station, Vitus Solis is mainly in charge of the technical aspects, such as around electronics and antennas. According to the announcement, VitusSolis has already successfully tested microwave wireless transmission. It transmits sunlight as a beam up to 100m in front. In the future, we plan to scale up for space energy stations. Meanwhile, Orbital Composite supports the project with its space manufacturing knowledge. It is already receiving funding from the US Space Force and Air Force through Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR). Looking at the two companies’ project plan to send solar energy to the earth by a satellite group deployed on an elliptical orbit, the satellite group is first launched into space using a renewable rocket. The robot then assembles the hexagonal satellites in space and arranges them in a circle. When completed, it is said to be regarding 0.5 km to 3 km in diameter. This round mirror-like array is used to transmit solar energy to a station with a diameter of 2 km located on the ground. It is said that this will be able to supply electricity to 150,000 people. A research team at the California Institute of Technology in the United States succeeded in collecting solar energy with a small prototype of a space solar power demonstrator launched in January, converting direct current power, and transmitting power to Earth through an interface that can be assembled and disassembled. Energy transmitted from space was also used to turn on the LED lights installed on the roof of the university campus building. This project is tens to hundreds of times larger than this, but it may not be a dream anymore. If space power becomes possible, it will be possible to produce energy efficiently and at low cost, and has the potential to fundamentally improve the energy problem on Earth. In other words, space power might be a hope for renewable energy. Related information can be found here.
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