Innovation

Japan will try to transmit solar energy from space to Earth

In just two years, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) will conduct experiments to transmit electricity generated in geostationary orbit to Earth. In order to transfer this energy, it is planned to use the existing technology, microwaves, writes "Новая наука".

Although the concept of a solar farm is already widely used on Earth, it has not yet been applied outside the borders of our planet. However, as Nikkei Asia explains in an article published on May 27, 2023, that won't happen anytime soon. JAXA, together with Kyoto University, plans to conduct solar farm tests in orbit as early as 2025.

The idea is to place this first facility in geostationary orbit, 36,000 km from Earth, and transmit electricity to our planet. This ambitious project seems quite feasible, as it will use the technology we already know: microwaves, which can transmit energy over long distances. This energy can then be easily converted into electricity. This technology has already been tested by the US Navy in 2022 as part of the Scope-M project. 

This technology has one important drawback: energy loss. However, this method is now being seriously considered. Japan is not alien to this technology. In 2009, Japanese researchers have already demonstrated the possibility of transmitting electricity to Earth from a balloon floating at an altitude of about 30 km. At that time, the power consumption was very low. The received energy was enough to charge the smartphone.      

However, in recent years, new experiments have been carried out in microwave power transmission, specifically to promote greater power transmission over a distance of 50 m. Further tests will be carried out in the near future to try to transmit even more power over several kilometers. It is clear that transmitting large amounts of energy 36,000 km from space would be a real revolution in the energy sector. Initially, several small satellites located several hundred kilometers above the earth's surface will participate in the preliminary tests.