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Space-based solar power (SBSP) has been in the news recently, with the successful test of a solar power demonstrator in space taking place last summer. While the concept is fundamentally sound, there are plenty of hurdles to overcome if the technology is to be widely adopted \u2013 not the least of which is cost. NASA is no stranger to costly projects, though, and they recently commissioned a study from their internal Office of Technology, Policy, and Strategy that suggests how NASA could continue to support this budding idea. Most interestingly, if the technological cards are played right, SBSP could be the most carbon-efficient, lowest-cost power source for humanity by 2050.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n To be clear, there are a lot of hurdles to overcome to get to that point, but first, let\u2019s start with what the report looked at. Its primary concern was two-fold \u2013 how expensive the electricity from a power satellite is and how high its lifecycle carbon emissions are, including those introduced to the atmosphere to get it into space in the first place.<\/p>\n Those two data points were analyzed for two different systems, one modular one called the SPS-Alpha Mark-III suggested by prolific inventor John Mankins, which is a little more theoretical, and another by a group of Japanese researchers called the Tethered-SPS that uses a more traditional design. In most of the calculations the report provides, the SPS-Alpha Mark-III outperforms the more conventional system. Still, there are some technical hurdles to its implementation \u2013 though nothing so complicated as some of the others discussed therein.<\/p>\n \n