GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
The future of satellites can be seen in using it to capture solar energy. This method of absorbing the sun energy is more efficient than that of collecting sunlight using the solar panels on the surface of the Earth. Solar panels on Earth can collect at the maximum of 9 hours of sunlight per day, and this would be reduced when there is cloud cover (Benefits of Space Solar Power, n.d.).
On the other hand, with powersats (solar power satellites) has the ability to collect sunlight for 24 hours (Benefits of Space Solar Power, n.d.). Furthermore, it will not be hindered by the Earth’s rotation (Portree, 2014). This means that with this technology, we can collect energy from the sun indefinitely. It is estimated that this technology can supply electricity to the US electricity demand between 2000 and 2030 (Portree, 2014).A
How is it done?
The space solar power absorbs sunlight from space and transmits this energy back to a receiving station on Earth wirelessly (Space Solar Power, 2014).
Limitations
However, the problem with this technology is that the solar power satellites are very large. To accomplish its functions, it is estimated that these satellites will be 10.5km long by 5.2km wide and they would be as heavy as 500k tons (Portree, 2014).
Furthermore, it is expensive to develop this technology. However, this cost would be much smaller than the cost of environmental damage due to global warming, climate change and carbon emission (Space Solar Power, 2014). Therefore, this technology would be a worthwhile investment, not only for the sake of the environment, but also for the future of mankind.
Importance
This development of Space Solar Power will give us unlimited clean energy (Space Solar Power, 2014). Clean energy has become increasingly important with the impending catastrophic effects of global warming. There is a need to move away from finite natural resources like fossil fuels, and change to alternative renewable resources. But, the key is to generate large supply of electrical energy from renewable sources such that it is able to meet the increasing demand of energy.
Space Solar Power has the potential to accomplish this. The solar energy in space is very much more than what we use today. It is able to provide more energy to Earth in 1 day than mankind would currently use within 27 years (Solar Energy, n.d.). Furthermore, it is estimated that the sun has a lifetime of 4-5 billion years (Space Solar Power, 2014). Thus, if we are able to collect all the energy from the sun using space solar power, the possibility of a long-term clean energy solution can be achieved.
This approach will not only help to resolve environmental problems caused by exponential increase of energy usage by mankind, but also provide a solution to the problem of meeting the high demand of energy (Space Solar Power, 2014).
Using satellites to capture solar energy.
Figure 1. Solar Power Satellites. Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2014/04/solar-power-satellites-a-visual-introduction/