Universities and IT businesses received £4.3 million from the UK government to create space-based solar power. The space sector has historically led solar power breakthroughs.
Cambridge University received funds from the government’s space-based solar power innovation competition to produce ultra-lightweight solar panels that can endure space radiation. Queen Mary University of London is also a beneficiary, developing a wireless device to securely send space-harvested solar electricity to Earth.
orbit-based solar power research gained traction when California Institute of Technology scientists used the prototype spacecraft Maple to send solar electricity from orbit to Earth.
The UK government announced £4.3 million funding to develop space solar as a renewable energy business.
Scaling up space-based solar arrays has several benefits. Each panel generates more energy than Earth-bound panels without air disturbance. Without day-night cycles, cloud cover, or seasonal sunshine fluctuations, solar energy would be continuous and uninterrupted.
Space-based solar power might create 10GW of electricity annually by 2050, meeting 25% of the UK’s power demands, according to a 2021 UK government-commissioned research. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says this technology may generate a multibillion-pound sector and 143,000 employment nationwide.
Other projects funded include Satellite Applications Catapult Ltd in Didcot, testing space satellite antenna technology, MicroLink Devices UK Ltd in Port Talbot, developing lightweight and flexible solar panels, and the University of Bristol, simulating solar space wireless power transfer capabilities to improve performance and reliability.
Imperial College London and EDF Energy will get funds to study the integration of space-based power plants and other low-carbon energy sources into the electrical system.
The UK government has pledged £4.3 million to develop space solar into a renewable energy business, including £3.3 million from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and £1 million from the UK Space Agency.
Though profitable, space-based solar power has downsides. Space solar panels may face asteroids, debris, and high solar radiation.