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In the past we have written about how the China is recovering at a (relatively) high speed the lost ground as far as his own is concerned space program. There are several more or less known plans of the Asian nation that currently can “boast” a space station (not as complex as the ISS, but still a good engineering effort), different types of space rockets, extra-planetary missions to the Moon and Mars with a future that looks even more interesting.
For example, new carriers made by both state and private agencies are being developed, orbital and suborbital spaceplanes, carriers for suborbital space tourism and a lunar research station that will succeed the first moon landing (thanks to the Long Marcia 5G / CZ-5G rockets ). Even more futuristic, however, is the orbiting space station equipped with solar panels able to convey energy from Space to Earth (called Space Solar Power Station or SSPS). This would allow a lot of energy to be exploited that would otherwise be dispersed with an impact that would be partially contained.
China and the orbiting station with solar panels: renewable energy from Space?
We had already written about this project in 2021 when it was talking about it Long Lehaochief engineer of the Long March rocket series and in general one of the most important people when it comes to the Chinese space program. It should be noted that this is currently a project “on paper” and, interesting as it may be, it will be necessary to carefully evaluate the technical and engineering limitations, as well as the actual benefit, that this solution will have in the future.
Thanks to a published study from Chinese Space Science and Technology we have some more information on how it could be developed and what the characteristics of the orbiting space station with solar panels to send energy to the Earth (Space Solar Power Station). As we wrote, this is a truly ambitious project (and the China is not the only nation that is thinking about this solution) and therefore the Asian nation will have several step before arriving at the final model.
If the plans are adhered to, the first prototype model will be in orbit in 2028. This will have few solar panels (1/4 the size of the full model) but will still allow testing of wireless, microwave or laser (low power) transmission to Earth. Thanks to its small size it will be possible to launch the solar space station as if it were a standard satellite with no need for in-orbit assembly. The nameplate data promises one power from 10 kWa voltage of 500 V. The positioning will be in low earth orbit (at 400 km) and with an area of a few meters.
If this experiment is successful we will move on to more complex solutions. In 2030 the solar space station of the China it will be half the size of the final design. There will be a larger antenna for microwaves and a medium-power laser for energy transmission. Due to the size it will have to be assembled in Space and will be able to generate from 100 kW as far as 1 MW with voltage of 1 kV. The station will be in geostationary orbit (36,000 km) and the surface will be a few tens of meters.
In 2035 there will be one solar space station complete. This will mean a microwave antenna of over 100 meters in diameter and a high-powered laser. The power generated should be up to 10 MW and 2 kV up to 5 kV. The dimensions will be greater than 100 meters and the positioning will always be in GEO. In 2050 there could then be the last evolution. The system will have an antenna of over 1km for microwaves, even more powerful lasers and of course an even more complex assembly. China would aim to generate up to 2 GW of energy with voltages of 10 kV o 20 kV and overall dimensions of over 1 km (always located in GEO).
In addition to systems in space, however, there will be a need for ground stations. These will gradually become larger and will be based on a system with a pilot beam (to know if the system is pointing in the correct direction) and a wider one for the actual transmission. In particular, the study also analyzes the problems relating to the precision that the transmission must have, the necessary compensations and other unknowns. As written initially, this project of the China is still in “embryonic stage” although the first experiments are already taking place in the laboratory. It will be a solution to the growing energy demand and the impact of non-renewable energy sources?
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