Space-based Solar Power in Low Earth Orbit
Published:
The emergence of Space-based Solar Power (SBSP) offers the potential of green, reliable, deliverable power from space to Earth. This technology is under development around the globe, with notable advances in the United Kingdom, Japan, China, and the United States. The UK has a strong position with the Space Energy Initiative which has been formed by stakeholders in government, academia and industry to develop SBSP. Advances in the UK have been funded by the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio, and various government agencies. However, beyond the primary application in civil energy production, the dynamic nature of wireless power beaming means that there is an attractive opportunity for military applications, including power beaming to forward operating bases, and the potential use of strong orbital signals to be used to support navigation and sensing systems. In particular, the well-defined positions and frequency standard of SBSP systems could allow their use as navigation beacons, and suitably designed passive radar receivers could use the satellites as convenient and durable illuminators of opportunity. A deployable power system which could produce over 1MW using a 10GHz narrow band power transmission from low earth orbit is considered, and the effects of transmitter size on efficiency and passive radar range is considered, while requiring less than 20% of the equivalent mass of a conventional deployable power generation system, without fuel requirements.