The magnitude of the looming energy and environmental problems is significant enough to warrant
consideration of all options, to include revisiting a concept called Space Based Solar Power (SBSP)
first invented in the United States almost 40 years ago.
The basic idea is very straightforward: place very large solar arrays into continuously and intensely
sunlit Earth orbit (1,366 watts/m2) , collect gigawatts of electrical energy, electromagnetically beam
it to Earth, and receive it on the surface for use either as baseload power via direct connection to the
existing electrical grid, conversion into manufactured synthetic hydrocarbon fuels, or as low‐intensity
broadcast power beamed directly to consumers. A single kilometer‐wide band of geosynchronous
earth orbit experiences enough solar flux in one year to nearly equal the amount of energy containe
within all known recoverable conventional oil reserves on Earth today.
I could go on but download the full thing from
http://www.acq.osd.mil/nsso/solar/SBSPInterimAssesment0.1.pdf
We are going to see the first Prototype in orbit in 2009
Delivering 10-25 megawatt beam down to earth
By the sounds of things(and a bit of research) Japan is very interested and may have already
started on there own Project.
Australia, ditch the tower in the middle of Australia and maybe look skywards.
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n0mad
N0t t00 w0ried about draining the Power Grid to power his Supa C0mputers anym0re
