The most important and pressing issue of our times is the transition to clean energy while meeting rising global demand. Cheap, abundant and reliable energy underpins the quality of life for all – and one potentially exciting way to do this is space-based solar power (SBSP). It would involve capturing sunlight in space and beaming it as microwaves down to Earth, where it would be converted into electricity to power the grid.
For proponents of SBSP such as myself, it’s a hugely promising technology. Others, though, are more sceptical. Earlier this year, for example, NASA published a report from its Office of Technology, Policy and Strategy that questioned the cost and practicality of SBSP. Henri Barde, a retired engineer who used to work for the Europ
Some of these sceptical positions on SBSP were addressed in a recent Physics World article by James McKenzie. Conventional solar power is cheap, he argued, so why bother putting large solar power satellites in space? After all, the biggest barriers to building more solar plants here on Earth aren’t technical, but mostly come in the form of belligerent planning officials and local residents who don’t want their views ruined.
Some of these sceptical positions on SBSP were addressed in a recent Physics World article by James McKenzie. Conventional solar power is cheap, he argued, so why bother putting large solar power satellites in space? After all, the biggest barriers to building more solar plants here on Earth aren’t technical, but mostly come in the form of belligerent planning officials and local residents who don’t want their views ruined.
However, in my view we need to take a whole-energy-system perspective to see why innovation is essential for the energy transition. Wind, solar and batteries are “low-density” renewables, requiring many tonnes of minerals to be mined and refined for each megawatt-hour of energy. How can this be sustainable and give us energy security, especially when so much of our supply of these minerals depends on production in China?
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