It is now possible to create a solar power station in space!

In 2011, Caltech implemented the SSPP, Space Solar Project. Having established on the ground that it is possible to move itenergyenergy Wireless electricity, it was still necessary to conduct the demonstration orbitorbit. For this purpose, the SSPD-1 experiment was deployed, on board a satellite platform developed by the American industrialist Momentus (read our article below).

SSPD-1 has three sub-parts: Dolce (which demonstrated the ability to publish a Solar power stationSolar power station), alba (which tests differently photocellsphotocells), and maple. The latter is a deployable array of 32 microwave transmitters, controlled by electronic chips built using low-cost silicon technologies. The goal is for the plant to be lightweight, with solar panels and a flexible emitter matrix, so it can fit inside rocketrocket.

Maple success

” As far as we know, no one has ever demonstrated wireless power transmission in space, even with very expensive rigid structures. We do this with lightweight, flexible structures and our own structures Integrated circuitsIntegrated circuits. It’s the first says Professor Ali Hajimere, co-director of SSPP.

Maple’s energy emitter assembly is arranged so that the majority of the energy can be transmitted in a specific direction by stacking the electromagnetic waves. To test the device in space, Maple has two receivers at the end of a mast about 30 cm (1 ft) long. On several occasions, the transmitters were able to receive the signal, convert it into electrical energy, and then light a pair of LEDs. Pictures taken by the onboard camera showed the success of the device.

The experiment also calculated the transmission of energy from the plant towards the Earth. The signal was successfully captured and, as expected, from SurfaceSurface Moore, on the campus of the California Institute of Technology.

The first tests of a solar power station in space

future solution? Sent by the California Institute of Technology a demonstratordemonstrator which will test the different elements essential to operating a solar power plant in orbit.

Article from Daniel ChristianDaniel Christianpublished on January 10, 2023.

It has always been a dream that inspired Americans, Japanese, Chinese, and more recently, Europeans Chose this path.

Update (02/08/2023): The topic was discussed in detail this month in naturewhich has looked at the various feasibility studies underway in Europe and China, whose agencies claim this solution will help achieve the goal of zero carbon in 2050. nature It also defines the safety of this concept. The Caltech demonstrator is a step forward, and testing should begin this month.

The orbit began aboard the Falcon 9 Transporter-6 flight from SpaceXSpaceXthat started from Cape CanaveralCape Canaveral 3 last January. demonstrator California Institute of Technology (California Institute of Technology) travels aboard a satellite platform orbitalorbital A commercial product called Vigoride, offered by the manufacturer Momentus, which also operates it.

SSPP demonstrator – Space Solar Project – is a project born in 2011 within the California Institute of Technology. It has already been tested on the ground, and there are still steps to be taken to test the new structure proposed by the institute.

A demonstration of space solar technology in orbit. © Caltech

This prototype is a step forward.

“No matter what happens, this prototype is a step forward.” This is how Professor Ali Hajimere, co-director of the project, defines this feasibility test. In fact, there are many aspects that need to be tested before a real orbital solar power plant can be hoped for. The load weighs approximately 50 kilograms, and the load is divided into three sub-parts, to which an electronic box connected to the platform is added:

• Dolce will test the architecture and deployment system;
• ALBA will test 32 different types of photovoltaics to determine which will be the most efficient despite the conditions of the space environment;
• Maple, an array of 32 microwave ultra-light transmitters, will verify the ability to direct the signal carrying received solar energy toward Earth.

The deployment of the Dolce architecture will be monitored by cameras installed at the end of the masts. Maple remains an essential test because once stored in the plant, electrical energy must be sent in the form of a microwave signal to a receiver on the ground. The problem is that the wave spreads in all directions like waveswaves It was caused by a pebble falling into the water. This is the case with one transmitter but with many files confusionconfusion Different wavelengths make it possible to concentrate the bulk of the emitted signal energy in a specific direction. Maple is a network of 32 transmitters.

How does wireless power transmission work? © Caltech