Solar energy has been around since the first sun was born. On earth solar power has been used for many purposes for years. This is been by placing panels on structures to absorb the energy of the sun and converting this energy to electricity. But the future for solar energy is in space.

Without an atmosphere to penetrate, the full tremendous amount of energy from the sun could be harnessed. The worlds space agencies have known about and utilized this concept since almost the beginning of man’s venture into space. It has powered spacecraft that are exploring the universe, powering satellites and fueling the power needs of the Hubble Telescope.  The next step would be to establish solar collectors in space and send that energy back to earth for utilization as a renewable, powerful energy source.

This concept was first imagined and studied by NASA back in the 1970’s. It was rejected due to the high cost and lack of technology to make it efficient. But it was recently announced that NASA is studying this concept again. A Space-Based Solar Collector could be in the near future as soon as 2015.

A Sun Tower is now being considered that could reach 22 miles in length with pairs of 100 to 200 meter diameter solar collectors attached to the structure. From a geosynchronous orbit, this renewable energy source has the potential to collect and supply the earth’s inhabitants with over a billion watts of power.

We have the technology to promote the future of Solar Energy.  All that is needed is the political will, backing and funding of the governments of the world to do so. This is an endless power supply, even after all the oil is gone, solar power will be there.

Tags: future of solar energy, renewable energy source, solar collectors in space, solar power, space based solar collector, sun tower

This entry was posted on Monday, March 9th, 2009 at 2:40 pm and is filed under solar power. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.