• Lemister [none/use name]@hexbear.net
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    10
    ·
    12 hours ago

    The soviets planned to do this in the 80s. Actually a lot of warsaw pact countries went big into renewable energy around this time, sadly the obvious thing happened.

    • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmygrad.mlOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      8
      ·
      11 hours ago

      Yeah, if USSR made it through the 90s then it likely would’ve been doing some really amazing things today. Luckily, we’ve got China to carry the torch now.

  • Sodium_nitride@lemmygrad.ml
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    36
    ·
    16 hours ago

    China plans to build ‘Three Gorges dam in space’ to harness solar power

    I see the Chinese have found access to space rivers?

    But jokes aside, I think it’s a bit clickbaity (from the article) to say “China plans” when the article only mentions a single scientist who is pretty much saying “wouldn’t it be cool if we had this?”. I’m sure out of all countries, China could build this, but I’d temper my excitement from just this statement.

    • someone [comrade/them, they/them]@hexbear.net
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      21
      ·
      edit-2
      15 hours ago

      Yeah, and orbital microwave power stations also have arms-control treaty implications. China has agreed (through accession) to following the stipulations of the Outer Space Treaty which forbids weapons of mass destruction in space. The difference between a microwave power transmitter and an orbiting energy weapon is only the difference between aiming it at a ground station’s rectennas and aiming it at a military target. Traditional ground-based solar power has its flaws but at least it’s an undeniably peaceful project.

    • ImmortanStalin@lemmygrad.ml
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      14
      ·
      16 hours ago

      Carve out a 50 year plan and get it done in 10. Meanwhile the private sector finally sets up its own space station that stays in orbit for 3 days.

  • iridaniotter [she/her, she/her]@hexbear.net
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    22
    ·
    15 hours ago

    I mean I guess we’ll see how fast space industry develops with the proliferation of reusable rockets but I seriously doubt gigawatt scale powersats will happen in the next couple of decades.

    • ☆ Yσɠƚԋσʂ ☆@lemmygrad.mlOP
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      25
      ·
      14 hours ago

      If Chinese moon base plans pan out, then it might be cheaper to start producing stuff on the moon and sending it to orbit from there at some point. I agree this is decades away either way though.

  • buckykat [none/use name]@hexbear.net
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    12
    ·
    15 hours ago

    “Imagine installing a solar array 1km wide along the 36,000km geostationary orbit,”

    This seems like a very weird idea for where to put a space based solar array. The geostationary orbit is already pretty crowded, and a lot of the array would be edge on to the sun at any given time.