Here is a report on Palau offering to be the place for the experimentation of the SPS.
---
Tiny Country Offers to Be Space Solar Power Satellite Testbed
By Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides
December 28, 2007 9:44:19 PM
At the climate change meetings in Bali, the small western Pacific island nation of Palau offered to be a testbed for space based solar power.
Although the price of space based solar power is still prohibitively high for general use, there may be special cases where its unique ability to deliver energy directly to where its needed with zero carbon emissions could be quite appealing. One such niche markets may well be this island nation. According to the Associated Press article, Palau president Tommy Remengesau Jr. is interested.
An entrepreneur, Kevin Reed, is proposing a very small demonstration satellite in low earth orbit that would be able to beam enough power down as it passes over every day to power 1,000 homes. The beam would at first be sent to a power station on one of Palau's uninhabited islands and provide direct current that could be used to charge batteries. He is currently looking for the $800 million he would need to fully fund the project.
Space based solar energy has long interested NASA and others in the space community because solar energy is eight times stronger in space then it is after it has passed through the atmosphere. Although it is not the silver bullet for climate, it is hard to imagine that we won't eventually utilize space based solar power, especially as the price of launching things into space comes down.
Larger systems could be placed in geosynchronous orbit that stay over a single point on Earth continuously and beam down 5 gigawatts of power (as the AP article puts it, "twice the output of the Hoover Dam"). The power would be converted to microwaves for beaming down to Earth. The beams would be "no more powerful than the energy emanating from a microwave oven's door."
Space based solar power also got a boost this fall from a new 75-page study by the Pentagon's National Security Space Office which was investigating space based solar power as a potential new source of power for global US military operations. If they could convince the Pentagon of its utility, space based solar power may get an even larger "demonstration project."
The article continues:
"The climate change implications are pretty clear. You can get basically unlimited carbon-free power from this," said Mark Hopkins, senior vice president of the National Space Society in Washington.
"You just have to find a way to make it cost-effective."
Advocates say this is an imperative to develop lower cost launch vehicles. They see this as "drilling up" instead of "drilling down" for energy.
I appreciated that the U.N.'s climate change expert even took the long view.
To Robert N. Schock, an expert on future energy with the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, space power doesn't look like science fiction.
The panel's 2007 reports didn't address space power's potential, Schock explained, because his team's time horizon didn't extend beyond 2030. But, he said, "I wouldn't be surprised at the beginning of the next century to see significant power utilized on Earth from space — and maybe sooner."
This may be another great place where space exploration and environmentalism can merge.
---
reference:
L. H. Whitesides, 2007. Tiny Country Offers to Be Space Solar Power Satellite Testbed
[online]. CondéNet, Inc: blog.wired.com/wiredscience/. Available from:
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/12/tiny-country-of.html[Last Accessed 10 June]
Researched by Shao Ting
writtern @7:50 PM
Previously, we had a post on the pros and cons of the SPS. So this post is further explaining the cons of SPSEarth based solar power
Why bother putting solar panels on a satellite when you could generate electricity by putting them on the ground or on rooftops here on Earth? The obvious problem is that any point on land is in the dark half of the time, so solar panels are useless during the night. During the day clouds can also block sunlight and stop power production.
The idea of generating power in space has been around for a while, but has never really gotten off the ground.
In orbit, a solar power satellite would be above the atmosphere and could be positioned so that it received constant direct sunlight. Some energy would be lost in the process of transmitting power to stations on the Earth, but this would not offset the advantage that an orbiting solar power station would have over ground based solar collectors.
There are also opportunity costs associated with both options. On Earth, land used for generating solar power is not being used for other things. Rooftop space may not be valuable, but acres of farmland are. There is also only a limited number of available slots in geosynchronous orbit where a satellite could be placed to continuously beam power to a specific receiver. Where land is at a premium, a satellite would have an advantage over a ground-based system.
For places with plenty of sun and available land, satellites couldn’t compete with generating solar power locally. It would be difficult to argue for the need of an orbital system if every place had San Diego’s weather and climate, but since this isn’t the case there would be demand for beaming solar power to locations that couldn’t generate it otherwise. Using solar panels here on Earth though is far easier and less expensive, so much of the focus on renewable energy solutions is not on satellite systems.
High cost of launching
Another barrier is that launching anything into space costs a lot of money. A substantial investment would be needed to get a solar power satellite into orbit; then the launch costs would make the electricity that was produced more expensive than other alternatives. In the long term, launch costs will need to come down before generating solar power in space makes economic sense. But is the expense of launching enough to explain why so little progress has been made?
There were over 60 launches in 2003, so last year there was enough money spent to put something into orbit about every week on average. Funding was found to launch science satellites to study gravity waves and to explore other planets. There are also dozens of GPS satellites in orbit that help people find out where they are on the ground. Is there enough money available for these purposes, but not enough to launch even one solar power satellite that would help the world develop a new source of energy?
In the 2004 budget the Department of Energy has over $260 million allocated for fusion research. Obviously the government has some interest in funding renewable energy research and they realize that private companies would not be able to fund the development of a sustainable fusion industry on their own. From this perspective, the barrier holding back solar power satellites is not purely financial, but rather the problem is that there is not enough political will to make the money available for further development.
In the long term, launch costs will need to come down before generating solar power in space makes economic sense. But is the expense of launching enough to explain why so little progress has been made?
There is a very interesting discussion on the economics of large space projects that makes the point that ǒthe fundamental problem in opening any contemporary frontier, whether geographic or technological, is not lack of imagination or will, but lack of capital to finance initial construction which makes the subsequent and typically more profitable economic development possible. Solving this fundamental problem involves using one or more forms of direct or indirect government intervention in the capital market.
Competing with other options
Even if a solar power system was built and launched there would still be the economic problem of producing electricity at a cost that is comparable to other options. Government subsidies can help get this new industry on its feet but it will need to compete in the market in order to survive. This is a challenge for all emerging renewable energy solutions.
Current non-renewable energy supplies are cheap. Even with the recent increases in the price of oil, it is still historically low. Adjusted for inflation, gas prices are still much lower than they were during the oil crisis in the 1970s. With current prices there is little incentive for customers or producers to pursue alternatives. Even if oil prices continue to increase, it is not likely that this will be enough to drive demand for alternatives. Although we will eventually run out of oil, coal, and other non-renewable energy sources, in the short term rising oil prices will simply generate more oil.
There are large amounts of known reserves that are too expensive to profitably develop when oil is below a certain price. As soon as the price increases past a certain threshold, a given field can be developed at a profit. From an economic standpoint, energy producers will take advantage of this and will make use of their existing infrastructure to extract, refine, and distribute as much oil as possible regardless of how high the price of a barrel of oil goes.
Again the problem is more of a political one than an economic one. There will not be a financial reason to start creating a solar power system in space unless we reach a decision to include the hidden environmental costs of our current non-renewable sources of energy into the equation. In the near term we certainly can afford to keep burning more oil, but are we willing to start investing in alternatives so we do not have to?
A very big problem
A fully-operational solar power satellite system could end up needing to be enormous. Some designs suggest creating rectangular solar arrays that are several kilometers long on each side. If we assume that enough money could be found to build something like this and that it could be run competitively against other energy options, there is the very real problem of figuring out how to get it into orbit or how to build it in orbit from separate smaller pieces.
Starting the development of such a system by building small proof of concept satellites is completely within our reach.
The largest solar panels ever deployed in space are currently being used on the International Space Station. They cover more than 830 square meters and are 73 meters long and 11 meters wide. These large panels make the ISS one of the brightest objects in the night sky. Scaling up from there to something much larger would be challenging, but the good news is that we can take one thing at a time.
For a proof of concept satellite it makes sense to use the stations solar panels as a baseline. By taking advantage of improvements in solar cell technology we could launch a demonstration satellite of the same size that generates up to 3 times as much power. The stations solar panels are 14% efficient, but recent advances with solar cells and solar concentrators could allow us to build panels that are up to 50% efficient.
If this demonstration system validated the theory behind generating power in space and beaming it down to Earth, the next step would be figuring out how to put even bigger solar panels in space. It may be that with our current launch options it simply is not possible to launch an operational solar power system into orbit. If that were the case, the concept would need to be put on hold until other lift options, such as a space elevator, are available.
Reference
http://www.thespacereview.com/article/214/1
Whatever happened to solar power satellites?
by David Boswell
Monday, August 30, 2004
Researched by Wai Tiem
writtern @9:36 PM
After learning about SPS for so long, let's explore into its "father". Introducing Mr. Peter E. Glaser, the man responsible for the creation of the SPS and the main idea behind it. He first proposed the idea of using radio waves to transmit energy from outerspace to Earth in 1968. This formed the backbone behind the design of our current SPS. Peter E. Glaser strongly believes in the importance of SPS in the future of mankind. Here is a post that he made on a website which showcases recent findings and news about space technology.
The World Needs Energy from Space
By Peter E. Glaser
posted: 03:01 pm ET
23 February 2000
Humanity faces a new energy crisis. A growing population and rising per-capita energy consumption require a move away from the polluting, finite energy supplies now in use. Moreover, renewable energy sources such as conventional solar and wind power can only meet a portion of projected needs.
Space holds the key to an inexhaustible, non-polluting energy supply. That key is space solar power (SSP) -- using space-based systems to collect the sun's energy and turn it into usable power for Earth.
SSP would employ satellites in Earth orbit or systems on the moon's surface equipped with solar cells that convert the sun's energy into electricity. The electricity is fed to transmitting antennas and beamed to receiving antennas on Earth, located on land or offshore.
This is not some futuristic dream. The key SSP technologies -- solar cells and wireless power transmission (WPT) -- are based on the work of 19th century innovators such as Henri Becquerel and Nikola Tesla.
The conversion of solar energy in space to usable power on Earth is the most plausible global alternative to nuclear power plants.
During the past three decades, SSP has been studied extensively by space agencies, universities and industry groups worldwide. International meetings have been held on the subject since 1970. There now exists a large and growing literature on the technical, economic and societal issues associated with SSP.
NASA and the Energy Department conducted a joint-evaluation program of solar power satellites in the 1970s, but interest among policymakers declined after that decade's energy crisis faded away. Recently, U.S. political interest in SSP has begun to revive -- sparked in part by the specter of global warming -- though other nations, including Japan and Russia, have conducted serious SSP research throughout.
But much greater attention and effort are needed. SSP should become a top priority of the U.S. space program, and more broadly of government and industry in the U.S. and around the world.
Consider the energy situation now confronting the world. Industrialization and urbanization will mean sharply increased energy use. Reliance on fossil fuels could produce unprecedented environmental damage. Moreover, such finite sources may soon be past their peak availability, if they aren't already.
The solution to this problem is to utilize terrestrial renewable energy resources to the maximum extent possible, while at the same time developing SSP as a global, 24-hour-a-day energy supply.
The conversion of solar energy in space to usable power on Earth is the most plausible global alternative to nuclear power plants, with their attendant safety, decommissioning and plutonium proliferation issues.
SSP can also be an integral part of global development. It can help boost economic growth and improve living standards. It is the only means toward increased energy supplies compatible with the environment.
Space solar power is a challenging, long-term opportunity to tap space's unlimited resources rather than relying only on Earth's limited ones. It will help sustain human life on Earth and, at a future time, in space.
Reference:
P. E. Glaser,23 February 2000. (information on edition not available).The World Needs Energy From Space [online]. Available from: http://www.space.com/opinionscolumns/opinions/glaser_000223.html [Accessed 26 May 2008]
Researched by: Chua Sin Ying
Compiled by: Chua Sin Ying
Posted by: Chua Sin Ying
writtern @8:45 PM
History of SPS
Ever wondered why you may not have heard of the term Solar Power Satellites (SPS) before even though it is a clean and green source of energy, with a practically limitless source?
This is because SPS, which was first thought up in the 1960s, has been largely ignored by the media and also other larger organizations around the globe. Many of the exhibitions regarding the SPS are poorly advertised and little fundings are channeled into the research and development of SPS. In fact, for the past 50 years, the amount that worldwide governments have spent on SPS research as compared to nuclear power development is actually 1 : 1000.
Why are countries around the world completely overlooking the fact that SPS would become a major source of energy for Earth in the future?
This is because many people claim that SPS as a major source of energy is unrealistic due to the fact that launch costs are high these days. Plus, many think that the thought that energy would just be able to come in through your window as microwave beams ready for use too good to be true. Indeed, many people feel that this would not be possible and that it sounded more like a tale from some sci-fi movies.
However, does the above points disagreeing with the further exploration of SPS really stand in front of the fact that the Earth desperately needs a limitless and clean source of energy in the future?
I am sure that many would think not. Currently, our store of fossil fuels are running out, and although biofuels have started being expanded, food sources are depleting because of it. Nuclear power plants are extremely dangerous structures and not many countries have the space and money to build these extensive buildings.
Therefore, SPS certainly does stand out as a possible source of energy for all countries in the world. Firstly, high launch costs could be minimized with more research funds channeling into the research for SPS. With more research funds, SPS launch costs could be decreased, and the thought that energy would be readily available wherever we are would definitely not be a scene from a sci-fi movie.
There is a limitless source of enegry out there in the outer space for humans to conquer. If SPS proves as a feasible idea to harness it, what is stopping us from developing the idea?
Reference:
(Information on author not available), (Information on year not available). Introduction-Energy from Space[online].(Information on edition not available).Space Future. Available from: http://www.spacefuture.com/power/introduction.shtml
[accessed 2 April 2008]
Researched by: Chua Sin Ying
Compiled by: Chua Sin Ying
Posted By: Chua Sin Ying
writtern @9:33 PM
Advantages of SPS
- SPSs can receive sunlight 98% of the time [1] -"a satellite in a high geosynchronous orbit (35,887 km altitude) is rarely shaded by the Earth"[1] -"no atmosphere or clouds" to block the sloar radiation to the SPS"[1]
- It can create new job opportunities in related fields and idustries
Disadvantages of SPS
- Expensive to lauch them into space
- Short lifespan -"satellites in geosynchronous orbit are outside the Earth's magnetosphere, leaving them open to bombardment by charged particles, this will drastically limit their lifetime" [1]
Reference
[1] R. McLeod, (2006). Entropy Production: Solar Power Satellite [online]. (Information on Edition unavailable). EntropyProduction.blogspot.com: R. McLeod. Available from: http://entropyproduction.blogspot.com/2006/07/solar-power-satellite.html [Last Accessed 30 March 2008]
Researched by: Shao Ting
Compiled by: Shao Ting
Posted by: Shao Ting
writtern @7:16 PM
About the SPS
A Solar Power Satellite (SPS) is above the Earth’s atmosphere and can be positioned so that it received constant direct sunlight. Hence, the SPS catches large amount of energy flowing from the Sun. It then pumps the energy to Earth via laser or microwave beam. “On earth it would be converted to electricity and fed into power grids to be tapped by terrestrial customers.”[1]
“The thought of beaming energy to Earth via satellite was first brought to light in the late 1960s by Peter Glaser, a technologist at
Arthur D. Little in Cambridge, Massachusetts.” [1]
The SPS was designed with sets of lightweight, inflatable fresnel reflectors. These devices focus the Sun's energy on small arrays of high-efficiency photovoltaic cells.
Reference
[1] Leonard David, 2001, October 17, Bright Future for Solar Power Satellites, [online], (Information on edition not available), Imaginova Corp., http://www.space.com/businesstechnology/technology/solar_power_sats_011017-1.html
[Accessed 25 Feb 2008]
2) Image 1: http://www.space.com/php/multimedia/imagedisplay/img_display.php?pic=h_boeing_sps_02.
jpg&cap=Initial%20conceptual%20looks%20at%20building%20power%20beaming%20satellites%
20blueprinted%20a%20mega-engineering%20project%20as%20shown%20in%20this%20Boeing%
20design.%20New%20technologies%20point%20to%20more%20efficient,%20less%20expensive%
20space%20solar%20power%20systems.%20Credit:%20Boeing/Space%20Studies%20Institute
2) Image 2: http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/IMAGES/SMALL/GPN-2003-00108.jpg
Researched by: Wai Tiem
Compiled by: Wai Tiem
Posted by: Wai Tiem
writtern @9:57 PM
Student-Initiated Assessment (SIA):
“Green TEA” (Environmental-based Textbook Extension Activities)
Group name: Solar smiles
Members’ names (index number): 1. Chua Sin Ying (3)
2. Hoong Shao Ting (8)
3. Wong Wai Tiem (32)
Class: 303
Title of SIA: Solar energy
Briefly describe the ‘green’ issue chosen
Solar energy is energy from the sun. The sun is an easily available and sustainable resource. Solar energy is renewable and it does not harm the environment. It is very clean and very accessible to most people. If solar energy is used to replace natural gases and fuels in more areas, the above mentioned would be able to last a longer period of time and not be depleted so quickly. Also, the reduced burning of fuels will benefit the environment and prevent worsening of ozone depletion.
The issue that we hope to focus one would be regarding how modern day space exploration affects our use of solar energy. Currently, one of the major ways that we have harnessed solar energy in space would be through Solar Power Satellites (SPS). These are satellites with large arrays of solar cells placed on them, able to convert solar energy to electrical energy and send them back to Earth via microwaves. The SPS would be able to provide Earth with a huge amount of energy for 24 hours all day round and all year round, hence making it a valuable source of energy.
SPS has been keenly observed by various space agencies worldwide these past few years, including NASA and the US Department of Energy, which jointly studied the further improvement and usage of the SPS. SPS2000 is actually a research model that has been created by scientists in order to find out more about the practical issued about the SPS in order to better harness the usage of solar energy in space.
State the rationale for your group’s choice of ‘green’ issue
Solar energy is large enough to be able to satisfy the energy demands. This makes it an ideal replacement for traditional energy sources, like fossil fuels. Hence, our group thinks that more research could be done in this area so that solar energy can replace other non-renewable sources of energy in the future, causing less harm to Earth.
We were also interested in how solar energy can be and is harnessed presently in space. As solar energy originates primarily from space, we thought that it would be interesting to research about ways humans have used their knowledge about the outer space in using solar energy. Plus, the only ways of harnessing solar power that we have seen are all found on land (e.g. solar heating panels), therefore researching on solar power usage in space would be a new topic for us.
Also, the SPS is actually a pretty recent topic, and there are still many areas yet to be discovered. Therefore, we feel that it would be beneficial for ourselves as we would be able to find out and perhaps deduce facts on our own apart from being presented with them. Also, we would like to share our findings with people of our age as we feel that in the future, we would most likely be the ones who would be making full use of this source of energy, and finding new and proper ways to harness it.
Briefly list the physics principle(s) related to the ‘green’ issue
1. Energy is defined as the capacity to do work.
2. The principle of conservation of energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, but only changes from one form to another.
Identify sources of reference materials that could be used in your research
(Information on author not available), 2007. (Information on edition not available). Solar Energy [online]. My Solar Energy At Home: MySolarEnergyAtHome.com. Available from:
http://www.mysolarenergyathome.com/
[Accessed 24 Jan 2008]
Energy Information Administration, 2007. (Information on edition not available). Renewable Energy-Solar Energy, radiant/light energy, heat/thermal energy [online]. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Department of Energy: The Energy Kid's Page. Available from:
http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/sources/renewable/solar.html
[Accessed 24 Jan 2008]
Loo W. Y., Loo K. W., 2007. Second Edition. Physics Insights-‘O’ Level 2nd Edition. Pearson Education South Asia Pte Ltd: (information on place of publication not available).
Dr. Seth Potter, 1998. (Information on edition not available). Solar Power Satellite primer [online]. Solar Power Satellites: An Idea Whose Time Has Come. Available from:
http://www.freemars.org/history/sps.html
[Accessed 28 Jan 2008]
Researched by: all 3 members
Compiled by: all 3 membersPosted by: Wai Tiem
writtern @9:44 PM
