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Caltechs solar space program began in 2011, when philanthropist Donald Bren donated more than $100 million to support the project. In the first demonstration of solar energy transported to Earth, his vision now comes true.
Solar power from space has been studied for decades because, in theory, it could harness a virtually unlimited supply of solar power in outer space. Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) calculate that solar power from space could produce eight times more power than solar panels located anywhere on Earths surface, and in January, Caltechs Space Solar Power Project ( SSPD) put into orbit a prototype to transport energy to Earth.
The SSPD deployed a constellation of modular spacecraft equipped with photovoltaic panels to collect sunlight, convert it into electricity, and transmit it wirelessly over long distances to wherever it is needed. According to Caltech, this technology could be useful in remote areas that lack transmission infrastructure.
Wireless power transfer was demonstrated by the MAPLE experiment (Microwave Array for Power-transfer Low-orbit Experiment), developed at Caltech. It is one of three key technologies being tested by Caltechs Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD-1), the first space prototype of Caltechs SSPP.
MAPLE includes lightweight microwave power transmitters driven by custom electronic chips that were built using low-cost silicon technologies. It uses the set of transmitters to transport the energy to the desired places.
“The experiments carried out so far have confirmed to us that MAPLE can successfully transmit power to receivers in space,” said Ali Hajimiri, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Medical Engineering and co-director of the SSPP.
"Weve also been able to program the array to direct its energy toward Earth, something we detected here at Caltech," Hajimiri explains. "Of course, we had tested it on Earth, but now we know that it can survive space travel and work there." |
