Solar power could soon be harvested in space and beamed back to Earth by lasers to help power electric cars and homes.
A Paris-based aerospace firm EADS Astrium has developed new technologies for transferring solar energy back to Earth. The company’s highly-skilled teams are now said to be capable of manufacturing large satellites that can collect solar energy and redirect it towards the ground using laser beams and special mirrors.
According to The Telegraph the firm hopes to have a small demonstrator of a full sized space-based power station, capable of beaming back 10-20kW of power, ready for launch in the next five years.
The process, although likely to be costly, could prove attractive because collecting solar energy in space has the possibility to supply a vast quantity of power 24 hours a day.
Unlike solar panels based on Earth, space-based solar power collection is not restricted by the power weakening effect of the Earth’s atmosphere and is not restricted to daylight hours.
"The real advantage of space solar power is that it can provide power on demand as we can essentially point the laser beam where ever we like on the earth below the orbit Matthew Perren, head of innovation at Astrium’s headquarters told the newspaper.
"Looking to the future we envisage large power stations in space that are capable of transmitting energy to any point in the planet on demand," he explained.
The space power stations would be launched into orbit while solar panels more than 50 metres across would be able to gather huge amounts of energy from the sun which could then be converted into a infrared laser beam and transmitted back to Earth.
According to the newspaper, one of the key uses of the technology could be to power a new generation of large electric vehicles such as cargo ships and tankers. The satellites could be made to move the laser beam to track the ships as they move across the ocean, providing a constant energy supply.
Scientists at the firm have already begun work on the technology needed to turn a laser beam into source of electricity. They have managed to use lasers in the laboratory to power toy cars.
The firm now hopes to attract the interest and investment of governments, space agencies and power companies in order to take the development of its technology to the next stage.
