Japan is taking the concept of solar energy to a new level by moving into outer space. The country’s OHISAMA project, named after the Japanese word for sun, will launch a space-based solar power station that can wirelessly beam energy back to Earth.
At the International Conference on Energy from Space, held in London in April 2024, Koichi Ijichi, an adviser at Japan Space System, discussed how OHISAMA would work. A test spacecraft weighing 400 pounds and fitted with a 22-square-foot solar panel will collect sunlight during its orbit. The energy that is harnessed will then be transferred to large antennas via microwaves.
“The transmission will take only a few minutes,” Ijichi shared. “But once the battery is empty, it will take several days to recharge.”
The satellite, which is on track to launch in 2025, will have a relatively low initial energy output. Currently, it is projected to transmit about 1 kilowatt of energy at an altitude of 250 miles. To put that into perspective, that’s the amount of energy needed to power a small household appliance like a dishwasher for an hour. While certainly not life-changing, Japan hopes that this small start can lead to something bigger.
Researchers have already demonstrated transmission from a moving aircraft; now they need to make the leap to space. The hope is to one day launch giant power satellites capable of producing up to one gigawatt of solar energy. Whether they are successful or not, even at this small scale, they are leading the charge. And if OHISAMA can get its test satellite into orbit, they will be making history.
Japan will make history when it launches a satellite to harness solar power from space as part of the OHISAMA project, which has undergone extensive testing.
Source: Japanese satellite will beam solar power to Earth in 2025; Japan poised to make history as the first country to transmit solar power from space to Earth
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