The idea of such a project is to install gigantic orbiting
power
stations in space, consisting of enormous areas of solar energy panels. The energy recovered per unit of surface area of the panels would be very much larger than that found on earth, because the atmosphere is not there to act as a screen against the sun’s radiation. How can the electrical energy recovered by the panels in space be transferred? In the form of microwaves, directed at earthbound receivers. Let’s hope the transmitting stations out in space aim accurately!
NASA carried out research on the subject between 1995 and 2000. And in 2001, Japan announced that it was going to build a power plant of this type: it would be finished in 2040. This orbiting solar power plant would work with 2 giant solar panels each of 1x3 km area and would weigh some 20 000 tons.
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