Why we need the moon for solar power on earth

By David R. Criswell

Lunar-based solar-power production should have been developed decades ago, argues one space expert.

Our Sun is the primary power source driving life on Earth. It has enabled us to use massive flows of oil, coal, and natural gas burned with oxygen to provide approximately 85% of the 15 trillion watts of commercial thermal power that energizes the $60-trillion-a-year world economy.

Solar power from the moon

By Patrick Tucker

A Japanese company is pitching an alternative energy plan that’s out of this world—and potentially the largest public infrastructure project in human history.

Crédito: Shimizu

The year is 2050 and it’s morning on the Moon. The Sun is rising over a landscape that is bleak and featureless with one exception: a wide belt of photovoltaic panels that cuts across the ash-gray lunar surface like a straight river. Not a single astronaut is in sight, but a troop of robots is busily making repairs to the installation where tune-ups are needed. Beneath the panels, superconducting cables are ferrying the Sun’s power to transmission centers. The power will be beamed to a receiving station near the Earth’s equator, and from there, it will be distributed to energy-hungry cities and towns across the globe where it will keep the lights on in offices, hospitals, and schools.