Solar energy is an abundant renewable energy source that can replace all the conventional coal plants worldwide. While its accessibility and affordability makes its accessibility a far-off dream for many homeowners, the technology continuously sees scientific improvements.
Many scientists and experts predict that solar energy satellites can harvest energy from the sun. Then, this energy can trickle down the planet through a wireless means of transference. It means using a rocket to launch the satellite, which will circle and face the sun throughout the day all week. The energy it will collect has no parallel; it is exposed continuously to UV rays that produce usable energy from sunrays.
Some roadblocks of satellite solar energy farms continue to slow its progress. "Rectenna" technologies have yet to see development because of the limited technology and designs. However, rectennas and other relevant technologies to make the solar energy farm feasible will likely see progress in the coming years – as much as the next decade.
Along with solar energy farms come new technological feats. Scientists are looking to fusing algae properties with photocells to harvest more solar energy. In the near future, solar energy storage might perform much better than ever, making it usable during nighttime.
Below, The Engineer writes about how solar satellite farms might thrive in the future.
Space-based solar power, a concept once confined to the world of science-fiction, may be closer to reality than we think. This year, various organisations within the global space sector are exploring its feasibility with hopes that, ahead of 2050, it could become a viable, constant source of clean energy.
Whilst research into space-based solar power is picking up pace, the concept isn’t new, researchers having explored it since the 1970s. Continued interest in its potential has sparked intermittent activity from the likes of NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) over the years, but until recently, it was deemed economically unviable.
Now, with the cost of launches coming down and decarbonisation becoming more urgent, researchers are excited about the prospect of a reliable renewable energy source which, for the first time, could be within reach.
A space-based solar power system would see solar energy harvested in space through a constellation of kilometre-scale Solar Power Satellites (SPS) in geostationary orbit, each equipped with solar panels and mirrors, which reflect the sunlight onto the panels. The energy would then be converted into radio frequency waves which would be beamed wirelessly to a receiving ‘rectenna’ on Earth, converted to DC electricity, and then put through an inverter to deliver AC power into the grid.
You’re essentially putting your solar farm in full visibility of the sun, 24 hours a day. That changes the nature of the power that you can provide
Sanjay Vijendran, leader of ESA’s SOLARIS initiative, believes that space-based solar power is something the energy sector should be paying attention to and investing in at similar levels to other advanced technologies. The goal of SOLARIS is to pave the way for a final decision on whether to power ahead with the development of space-based solar in 2025, through further research, technical activities and international collaboration.
“It is solar power as you know it, with solar panels converting sunlight into electricity, but in a way that is not possible to get on the surface of the Earth because of weather, the day and night cycle and the seasons,” Vijendran told The Engineer.
“You’re essentially putting your solar farm in full visibility of the sun, 24 hours a day. That changes the nature of the power that you can provide … you’re now having a source of green energy that is constant, and terrestrially, it’s not possible to attain that. Whether it’s wind, solar or hydro power, they’re still at some level environment-dependent.” (Continue reading to learn more).
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