ESA's Space-Based Solar Power Stations Could Fulfil Earth's Energy Needs In Future

What if your energy needs were met from space? Space-based solar power generation could be a reality soon, providing an alternative to fossil fuels and nuclear power.

The European Space Agency (ESA) could soon approve a plan to explore whether solar power could be collected by satellites in space and later beamed down to Earth. Sounds too good to be true? It probably is.

ESA/BBC

But this is among a series of proposals put forward at the two-day ESA's Council Meeting at Ministerial Level. If approved (and successful), we could soon see giant solar farms orbiting Earth - bringing in as much solar energy as conventional power stations.

Why space-based solar power is promising

According to ESA, there are to advantages to operating solar panels outside the Earth's atmosphere. Firstly, sunlight received outside the Earth's atmosphere is more intense than what reaches Earth's surface. Secondly, this sunlight can be collected continuously, regardless of time or weather.

Owing to these potential benefits, ESA feels that space-based solar power could be of "enormous" help in tackling shortages in the future, space agency's Director General Dr. Josef Aschbacher told BBC.

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¡°We do need to convert into carbon neutral economics and therefore change the way we produce energy and especially reduce the fossil fuel part of our energy production," he added. Aschbacher believes that space-based solar power could "solve a lot of problems."

Also read: Wind And Solar Energy Beat Coal To Generate 38% Of Global Electricity In 2021

The ESA's proposed programme is called "SOLARIS." It would be a three-year investigation in the "technical, political, and programmatic viability of space-based solar power," Express reported. In 2025, the agency will assess the potential for a full-scale development programme.

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"The challenge of decarbonising Europe¡¯s energy sector over the coming decades is a massive one. In addition to the needed massive increase of ground-based solar and wind, which are intermittent by nature, there is an urgent need for new grid balancing and back-up power sources," an ESA spokesperson was quoted by Express.

Currently, scientists around the world are assessing the feasibility of alternative sources for energy, and SOLARIS will analyse whether "space-based solar power ¡ª a decades-old concept for delivering clean energy" will work for humanity in the long-run.

Also read: Novel Solar Cells Using Perovskite Could Make Solar Energy Use & Storage More Efficient

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Under SOLARIS, power stations will be placed into Earth's orbit to harvest sunlight the same way solar panels on Earth do. This energy would then be converted into low-power density microwaves for wireless transmission to receiver stations on Earth. From here, the energy would enter a power grid.

"The physics involved means that these satellites would have to be large, on the order of several kilometres in size ¡ª and the same being true for the collecting ¡®rectennas¡¯ on the Earth¡¯s surface," ESA said.

What do you think about generating energy in space for humanity? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com.

References

Randall, I. (2022, November 23). Your energy could soon come from space as ESA mulls plan for solar farms in orbit. Express.co.uk. https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1700353/energy-space-solar-power-farm-orbit-esa-european-space-agency-solaris

Ghosh, B. P. (2022, November 22). Esa mulls Solaris plan to beam solar energy from space. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-62982113