A plane flying over Pennsylvania was not in fact a regular flight; it had a beaming purpose that filled us with pride.
The international energy industry has seen several potential energy-generating innovations in recent years. From huge advanced wind turbines to the remarkable revival of the US nuclear sector, the nation is filled with energy. But sending it from point A to B can be a challenge. No more.
How could energy be beamed directly to our solar panels?
How recent innovation has changed the global energy industry
We all know that our reliance on oil and gas needs to end.
Especially considering that the recent military operations in the Middle East have caused a dramatic rise in oil prices. As such, most of the world has turned to the renewable energy sector.
The solar power sector took decades to reach the 2022 mark of 1 TW produced, but only took two years after that to double that output to 2 TW in 2024.
The more modern perovskite-silicon solar panels have achieved remarkable efficiency, producing almost 60% more energy than their predecessors. So what more can be achieved in the solar industry?
Energy production has far greater impact on the global economy than we thought
The reality of the current energy market is that millions rely on it for their livelihood, and would struggle to find other employment if the market faded.
And the clean energy sector has become a major factor in global economies. Renewable energy creates five times more employment opportunities than fossil fuels, hitting the 30 million mark a couple of years ago.
Solar power can impact the birth of new nations that aim to generate all the power needed from the Sun.
The efficiency of modern technology now allows power to be sent across vast distances with only a mere 1% loss. With the recent spike in oil prices, most of the world’s oil is stuck in tankers around the Middle East region. A new clandestine “oil highway” has emerged for the sale of sanctioned oil.
So what is the next step, as clearly the solar energy industry is our best answer to powering the world? One recent flight in Pennsylvania has revealed an answer.
A landmark achievement in the solar energy sector has flown over our heads
A startup called Overview Energy recently made a profoundly significant dream a reality when the company sent out a Cessna commercial plane over the skies in Pennsylvania. The plane was fitted with a laser that beamed solar energy directly to a receiver on the ground.
The company states that this is the first time in history that a moving source of energy beamed power directly to regular ol’ solar panels on the ground.
The test flight proved that the eye-safe beam of energy can send vast amounts of energy generated to solar panels that have a fixed receiver. The next step after the testflight would be to conduct a similar test in low-orbit.
Solar power’s impact on the environment can be drastically reduced, and space has far stronger solar energy waiting to be absorbed.
Space solar power is the answer to our energy needs on Earth
Caltech’s Space Solar Power Project demonstrated that power can be transferred in space using microwaves. However, this system uses an optical laser to send the solar energy downwards to us.
The plane used a low-power-density beam or laser to send the solar power down to normal, everyday solar panels on the ground. But this system needs to be upgraded to a high-density beam to make the theory feasible, and the team noted that more safety protocols would need to be developed.
Overview expects the system to beam megawatts of energy by 2030, and possibly send gigawatts later in the decade.
As some search the deepest parts of the nation for oceans of energy, Overview is looking up towards the sky to power our progress.
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