Solar power station in space to beam electricity to Earth

Solar electricity from space could be a solution to the world's energy problems.However, much like nuclear fusion, there is still a lot of uncertainty about development costs and timelines.Still, scientists from China's Xidian University completed testing and inspection on a ground array intended to collect space-based solar power, bringing the world one step closer to witnessing operational space-based solar power.

According to a press release from the university, they successfully tested the "world's first full-link and full-system solar power plant" on June 5.

A 246-foot-tall (75-meter) steel tower on Xidian University's southern campus houses the space-based solar power plant.

The Xidian University power plant will theoretically connect to orbital satellites that will capture solar electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week due to their geostationary orbits, before beaming that energy down to Earth through high-frequency microwave beams. The power plant will include five subsystems dedicated to the development of space-based solar power arrays.

Solar power from space has a lot of potential because it can collect energy continually without having to deal with issues like bad weather or waiting for the sun to rise. However, there are still obstacles to overcome, such as determining the impact of a high-frequency energy beam on communications, aviation traffic, and the health of local populations.

The new ground station at Xidian University is part of a concept for space-based solar power called OMEGA, which stands for Orb-Shape Membrane Energy Gathering Array. Duan Baoyan of the Xidian University School of Electromechanical Engineering and his colleagues first presented the proposal in 2014.