Graduate University), member of the International Academy of Astronautics (IAA), the International Astronautical
Federation (IAF), the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), and the Sigma Xi Research
Society, President of ARTEMIS Innovation Management Solutions LLC, a research and development management
consulting start-up that solves tough innovation challenges for government, industry and not-for-profit clients, and
Co-founder of Managed Energy Technologies LLC, a new energy technology start-up that aspires to transform solar
energy solutions for terrestrial and space markets, 25-year career at NASA ranged from flight projects and space
mission operations, to systems-level innovation and advanced technology research and development management,,
2K8
(John C., Spring, ad Astra, Special Report: Space-based Solar Power Inexhaustable Energy From Orbit, page @
,
)
At an altitude of 22,240 miles
above Earth
, a great platform orbits, using vast,
mirrored wings
to
collect a continuous torrent of
sunlight always available in space
. With few moving parts, the platform redirects and focuses this solar energy onto concentrating photovoltaic arrays—
converting it into electrical power. In turn,
the power is transmitted wirelessly
— and with minimal losses—
to highly-efficient
receivers
the size of airports
on the ground
.
It is a seamless, endless transfer: The platform constantly
gathers more than 5,000 megawatts of sunlight and delivers more than 2,000 megawatts of
clean, near-zero carbon electrical power to customers as needed anywhere within an area the
size of a continent. It can be routed directly into the electrical grid as base-load power—and
divided across a half dozen or more receivers to meet local peak power needs. It can be used as
well to power the annual production of hundreds of millions of gallons of carbon-neutral
synthetic fuels
. In an era when new energy options are urgently needed,
space solar power is an inexhaustible solution—and
the technologies now exist to make it a reality. The world cannot wait much longer
. While the past century
has been one of the most remarkable periods in human history, it has also been dominated by the use of fossil fuels. Yet, the accelerating global consumption of affordable and available
energy sources will soon present fundamental challenges. In less time than has passed since the founding of Jamestown, today’s
coal reserves will be forever
gone
. Also, most scientists agree that
the use of fossil fuels is profoundly altering
both local environments and
the climate
of the
world itself.
Capturing solar power from space-based platforms can solve this crisis. This is energy
that is
essentially
carbon-free, endless and can be dispatched to best meet the dynamically changing
requirements of populations separated by thousands of miles.
