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Space-Based Solar Power Works!

Posted on July 4, 2023 by dishanth

The concept of space-based solar power (SBSP) has been around for over five decades, but it’s only now that scientists have achieved a major milestone in its development. In June 2023, scientists at the California Institute of Technology successfully transmitted solar power to Earth from space using a prototype spacecraft called Maple. This breakthrough could pave the way for energy to be sent to remote regions and areas affected by war or natural disasters where access to electricity is limited.

The idea of space-based solar power involves capturing the energy produced by the sun in space and transmitting it wirelessly to Earth using microwaves. The technology required to achieve this is complex, but the potential benefits are enormous. Since the sun shines 24 hours a day in space, space-based solar power would provide a constant source of renewable energy that’s not affected by weather conditions or time of day. It could also be used to power space missions and settlements.

The first engineering design for a solar power satellite was produced by Czech-born NASA engineer Peter Glaser in 1968 and published that year in the journal Science. Since then, there have been several attempts to develop the technology required for SBSP, but progress has been slow due to the high costs involved and technical challenges. However, recent advances in space technology and wireless power transmission have renewed interest in space-based solar power as a viable source of clean energy.

The Maple spacecraft launched into orbit in January 2023 was designed to test the technology required for SBSP. It consisted of two parts: a solar panel that captured sunlight and converted it into electricity, and a microwave transmitter that beamed the energy to a receiving station on Earth. The power was transmitted wirelessly over a distance of 1.2 miles, which may not seem like much, but it’s a significant achievement given the technical challenges involved.

One of the main challenges of space-based solar power is the need to transmit energy wirelessly over long distances without losing too much power. This is achieved using microwaves, which are similar to the waves used in microwave ovens but at a much higher frequency. Microwaves can travel through the atmosphere and are not affected by weather conditions, making them ideal for transmitting energy from space. However, they can also be dangerous if not properly contained, so safety measures need to be put in place.

Another challenge of Space-Based Solar Power is the cost involved in launching the necessary equipment into space. Solar panels and microwave transmitters are bulky and heavy, which makes launching them into space expensive. However, recent advances in space technology have made it possible to launch smaller and more efficient satellites at a lower cost. This could make SBSP more economically viable in the future.

The potential benefits of SBSP are numerous. Since it provides a constant source of renewable energy, it could help reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It could also be used to power remote regions and areas affected by war or natural disasters where access to electricity is limited. In addition, it could be used to power space missions and settlements, making long-term space exploration more feasible.

However, there are also concerns about the potential drawbacks of SBSP. One concern is the environmental impact of launching large numbers of satellites into space. Space debris is already a major problem, and adding more satellites could exacerbate the problem. Another concern is the potential health risks of wireless energy transmission. Although microwaves are generally safe, there’s still some uncertainty about their long-term effects on human health.

Despite these concerns, the successful transmission of solar power from space to Earth using Maple is a major achievement that could pave the way for more research into SBSP and its development into a viable large-scale energy source. The next step is to scale up the technology and test it over longer distances.

While there are still challenges to overcome, the potential benefits of SBSP are enormous and could play a critical role in our transition to a low-carbon future.

Source Happy Eco News

Colgate and NASA team up for sustainable products in space

Posted on December 20, 2022 by dishanth

As part of the Space Act Agreement, experiments will be held at the International Space Station to make space travel more sustainable and hygienic
At times, sustainability can make strange bedfellows. In that spirit, the Colgate-Palmolive Company this week announced a partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) which will see the toothpaste mavens and the space program investigate how astronauts might live in a hygienically sustainable manner.

The partnership will explore innovative products that are at once sustainable and suitable for space travel. At the top of the list of products are waterless tablets in lieu of traditional teeth cleaning products as well as compact sustainable packaging technology that can be used at low orbit.

As part of the agreement, Colgate will have access to the International Space Station for the purposes of testing. Among the other areas of testing outside of sustainability are health and preventative skin care technologies.

A seasoned veteran

Dr. Cady Coleman, a former astronaut herself, will be working with Colgate in an advisory capacity, offering insights into space travel and existence in microgravity. Having gone to space three times – at one point for a 180 day stretch – over the course of a 24-year stint at NASA, and being a polymer chemist in the Air Force, Coleman is well-suited for the role. Indeed, she has already conducted over 100 experiments outside of the earth’s atmosphere.

She struck a sanguine tone when commenting on the new role: “I’m excited to work with the Colgate team as they collaborate with NASA to better understand how to maintain a healthy environment for humans living and working in space. The International Space Station is our testing ground for future missions to the Moon and Mars, and provides an important opportunity to understand how we can optimize crew health and performance in microgravity. And, like so many of the investigations that we conduct in space, this work can also lead to discoveries that will advance health and wellbeing for everyone here on Earth.”

Source Sustainability

Nasa climate research scientist awarded World Food prize

Posted on May 9, 2022 by dishanth

A Nasa climate research scientist who has spent much of her career explaining how global food production must adapt to a changing climate was awarded the World Food prize on Thursday.

Cynthia Rosenzweig, an agronomist and climatologist, was awarded the $250,000 prize in recognition of her innovative modeling of the impact of climate change on food production. She is a senior research scientist at the Nasa Goddard Institute for Space Studies and serves as adjunct senior research scientist at the Columbia Climate School at Columbia University, both based in New York.

Rosenzweig, whose win was announced during a ceremony at the state department in Washington, said she hopes it will focus attention on the need to improve food and agricultural systems to lessen the effects of climate change.

“We basically cannot solve climate change unless we address the issues of the greenhouse gas emissions from the food system, and we cannot provide food security for all unless we work really hard to develop resilient systems,” she told the Associated Press during an interview ahead of the ceremony.

Jose Fernandez, the undersecretary of state for economic growth, energy and the environment, said more than 160 million people worldwide experienced food insecurity last year, a 19% increase over the year before, and one of the root causes is a decline in food production due to global warming.

Cynthia Rosenzweig at the Columbia University Climate School in New York City on 3 May. Photograph: Ted Shaffrey/AP

“Climate change has already had a significant and negative impact on global agricultural production and its impact is only going to get worse. We’re seeing rice fields drown in floods. We’re seeing other crops wither in drought. We’re seeing shellfish die in more acidic oceans and crop diseases are spreading to new regions. We likely would not understand all these problems as well as we do today without the work of Dr Cynthia Rosenzweig, this year’s World Food prize laureate,” he said.

The Des Moines-based World Food Prize Foundation award recognized Rosenzweig as the founder of the Agricultural Model Intercomparison and Improvement Project. The organization draws scientists from around the world and from many disciplines to advance methods for improving predictions of the future performance of agricultural and food systems as the global climate changes.

The foundation credited her work with directly helping decision-makers in more than 90 countries establish plans to prepare for climate change.

In her work, Rosenzweig has studied how farmers can deal with climate change and how agriculture worsens the problem. For example, she contributed to a research paper published last month that said global agri-food systems create nearly one-third of the total global greenhouse gases emitted by human activity.

Rosenzweig said the world needs to reduce such emissions and adapt to the changing climate. She noted that greenhouse gases come from many parts of food production, including the release of carbon and carbon dioxide through the clearing of forests for farmland and the oxidization of carbon through the plowing of fields. The use of fertilizer also releases atmospheric nitrous oxide, farm equipment emits fossil fuels and cattle release methane.

Rosenzweig, who describes herself as a climate impact scientist, grew up in Scarsdale, New York, a suburban area that she said led her to seek out life in the country. She moved to Tuscany, Italy, with her husband-to-be in her 20s and developed a passion for agriculture. Upon returning to the United States, she focused her education on agronomy.

She worked as a graduate student at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies in the early 1980s, when global climate models were beginning to show the effects of human generated carbon dioxide on the global climate. As the only team member studying agronomy, she researched the impact on food production and has been working since then to answer those questions, she said.

Rosenzweig’s work led to the Environmental Protection Agency’s first projections of the effect of climate change on the nation’s agricultural regions in the agency’s assessment of the potential effects of climate change on the United States in 1988. She was the first to bring climate change to the attention of the American Society of Agronomy and she organized the first sessions on the issue in the 1980s.

She completed the first projections of how climate change will affect food production in North America in 1985 and globally in 1994, and she was one of the first scientists to document that climate change was already affecting food production and cultivation.

The research organization she founded, AgMIP, develops adaptation packages, which could include the use of more drought-tolerant seeds and improved water management practices. In Bangladesh the group is working with rice farmers to develop new practices for managing rice paddies to reduce the significant release of methane produced by the existing process.

She said even the largest agribusiness corporations have shown a willingness to listen. She said some models colleagues have developed show how businesses could be effected by climate change and how they too have a role to play in reversing impact on climate.

“It’s really a global partnership of all the global food system to come together to restrain climate change and maintain the food security for the planet,” she said.

The World Food Prize Foundation president, Barbara Stinson, who announced the winner, credited Rosenzweig for innovations that helped countries respond to climate change.

Nobel prize laureate Norman Borlaug created the World Food prize in 1986 to recognize scientists and others who have improved the quality and availability of food. Rosenzweig will receive the award and make a speech during an October ceremony in Des Moines.

Source The Guardian