Japan is preparing for space solar power generation

The idea of ​​creating photovoltaic systems that would exist outside the Earth and send solar energy to our planet using microwave radiation is not new since it fell on the table in 1968, but despite the frantic development of technology in the following decades, related efforts to determine whether This is a practical solution that can be a reliable and sustainable solution to humanity’s growing energy needs.

Japan considered the idea of ​​producing energy from space to be a good idea, and related research has been conducted for many years, whether through government or private initiative. As it has become known, a new public-private collaboration has been created in Japan with the goal of installing solar panels and satellites in space to generate solar energy and transmit it to Earth by 2025. The project is being led by Naoki Shinohara, a scientist from Kyoto University who has been working on solar energy from space since 2009.

Establishing photovoltaic installations in space can revolutionize the energy sector as they will be able to produce energy 24 hours a day and not just during the day, while they will not have other natural obstacles such as clouds etc. as happens on Earth. But with current technical capabilities, creating a photovoltaic system in space that produces 1 gigawatt of power at an estimated cost of $7 billion makes the whole effort unprofitable for now, but we’ll have to find out more details about the Japanese planning and let’s see if it’s possible. actually.

China is also making similar plans to build photovoltaic installations, indeed of gigantic proportions, in space, with some information indicating that this effort will begin in 2028. The European Space Agency, for its part, has established the SOLARIS research program for the same purpose.

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