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The Chinese scientists hoping to use a space solar plant to power the world Using a few mirrors, solar panels and a microwave transmitter, Fan Guanheng and his team can send power over 100 metres (330 feet) through the air. But they are dreaming much bigger – 36,000km (23,460 miles) bigger. The team at Xidian University in Xian, capital of northwest China’s Shaanxi province, are testing hardware that could one day be used to generate power in space and send it back to Earth. On a sweltering June morning, the team were measuring how well light was concentrated by a...

China aims to shine in space-based solar power tech By ZHAO LEI | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2023-11-28 23:48 Solar: Developing key components among challenges Amid global efforts to replace fossil fuels with clean energy, Chinese scientists and engineers are working on a bright idea — soaking up abundant energy from the sun and then beaming it back to Earth. Multiple teams in China are currently focused on technologies needed for building and running a space-based solar power facility, which will allow the sun's energy to be captured nonstop, something that isn't possible from Earth, said Hou Xinbin, a senior researcher at the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing and a member of the Committee of Space Solar Power of the Chinese Society of Astronautics. After collecting solar energy, the space facility will convert it into electromagnetic radiation, such as microwaves, and laser beams and send it wirelessly back to the Earth's surface. Receiving stations will then turn these electromagnetic waves and laser beams into electricity for distribution to power grids, according to Hou, who is also a member at the Permanent Committee on Space Solar Power…

The Chinese scientists hoping to use a space solar plant to power the ... Using a few mirrors, solar panels and a microwave transmitter, Fan Guanheng and his team can send power over 100 metres (330 feet) through the air. But they are dreaming much bigger – 36,000km (23,460 miles) bigger. The team at Xidian University in Xian, capital of northwest China’s Shaanxi province, are testing hardware that could one day be used to generate power in space and send it back to Earth. On a sweltering June morning, the team were measuring how well light was concentrated by a 4.8-metre, dome-shaped mirror suspended from a 75-metre-tall tower. Advertisement The futuristic technology boiled down to three steps, said Fan, an associate professor at the university’s school of mechano-electronic engineering. First, the mirrors focus sunlight onto solar panels, generating electricity. Advertisement Then, the electricity is converted into microwaves and beamed to an rectenna, a kind of antenna. South China Morning Post

China hits new milestone in space solar power project Xinhua | Updated: 2026-05-19 09:50 XI'AN -- Chinese scientists have taken a major step toward building a space solar power station, a giant power plant in space that could one day send energy back to Earth or to spacecraft. A research team from Xidian University in Northwest China's Shaanxi province has made significant progress on the Sun Chasing project, or "Zhuri" in Chinese. The team has developed a ground-based test system for wireless power transmission that can charge multiple moving targets at the same time. In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 percent from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power. The team has also built a wireless charging system for drones. In a test, a drone flying at 30 kilometers per hour was able to receive 143 watts of stable power from 30 meters away. A space solar power station works exactly as its name suggests: a huge array of solar panels placed in orbit. It would collect sunlight in space, where the sun always shines, and then convert that energy into microwaves or lasers…

China hits new milestone in space solar power project - Xinhua Source: Xinhua Editor: huaxia 2026-05-18 22:29:15 XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese scientists have taken a major step toward building a space solar power station, a giant power plant in space that could one day send energy back to Earth or to spacecraft. A research team from Xidian University in northwest China's Shaanxi Province has made significant progress on the Sun Chasing project, or "Zhuri" in Chinese. The team has developed a ground-based test system for wireless power transmission that can charge multiple moving targets at the same time. In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 percent from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power. The team has also built a wireless charging system for drones. In a test, a drone flying at 30 kilometers per hour was able to receive 143 watts of stable power from 30 meters away. A space solar power station works exactly as its name suggests: a huge array of solar panels placed in orbit. It would collect sunlight in space, where the sun always shines, and then convert that…

China Is Building a Solar Station in Space That Could Generate ... The Three Gorges Dam—located on the Yangtze River in China—is the largest hydroelectric dam in the world. Though there is discourse over whether the dam has negative ecological effects, it is an impressive hydropower project, with over20 timesthe energy-generating capacity of theHoover Dam. Now, China wants to build another revolutionary energy source: a solar array in space. “It is as significant as moving the Three Gorges Dam to a geostationary orbit 36,000km (22,370 miles) above theEarth,” Long Lehao, a rocket scientist and member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), said in a lecture reported by theSouth China Morning Post. “This is an incredible project to look forward to.” Space-based solar power (SBSP)stations work by using a system of mirrors to concentrate sunlight onto panels, which then generateelectricity. The electricity is then converted to microwave radiation and beamed to a fixed antenna on Earth. SBSP panels are more reliable than thesolar panelson your roof because they aren’t affected by seasonal weather or nights. They can generate much more electricity than terrestrial panels, as sun…

China Strikes Hard in Space: Geostationary Satellite Pulverizes ... © Satellites Orbiting The Earth. Credit: Shutterstock Share this post Share on X Send through Whatsapp Copy the link China has reported a significant advance in satellite laser communication, achieving both record-breaking downlink speeds and highly efficient long-distance data transmission. In early 2025, Interesting Engineering detailed how researchers from Chang Guang Satellite Technology (CGST) successfully demonstrated a 100 gigabit-per-second (Gbps) optical link to a mobile ground station. A few months later, a Chinese geostationary satellite transmitted data at 1 Gbps over a distance of 36,000 kilometers using a laser of just two watts. These results point to rapid progress in the field of orbital communications and highlight China’s growing role in next-generation space infrastructure. A Dim Beam with Big Implications In January 2025, CGST engineers pushed optical satellite communications to new levels, demonstrating downlink speeds of 100 Gbps using a mobile ground terminal, according to Interesting Engineering . The achievement showed that the technology could operate in practical, mobile conditions, rat…

Xidian University team tests hardware for space solar power beamed to ... Share: Copied Listen to Article Audio Loading voice… 0.85× 1× 1.15× 1.3× 1.5× Synopsis Chinese researchers at Xidian University in Xi'an are testing hardware to beam solar energy from geostationary orbit — 36,000 km above Earth — using microwaves, in a bid to deliver uninterrupted, weather-proof clean power on a planetary scale. Key Takeaways Fan Guanheng and his team at Xidian University, Xi'an , are testing space solar power hardware capable of transmitting energy over 100 metres (330 feet) using mirrors, solar panels, and a microwave transmitter. The ground prototype uses a 4.8-metre dome-shaped mirror mounted on a 75-metre-tall tower to concentrate sunlight onto solar panels. The long-term target is a power satellite operating at geostationary orbit — 36,000 km (23,460 miles) above Earth — to deliver continuous solar energy unaffected by weather or night cycles. China, Japan, the United States, and NASA are all actively researching space-based solar power, with competing national programmes including China's Zhuri project and the American SPS-ALPHA concept. Key optical technologies under evaluation inclu…

China hits new milestone in space solar power project - People's Daily XI'AN, May 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese scientists have taken a major step toward building a space solar power station, a giant power plant in space that could one day send energy back to Earth or to spacecraft. A research team from Xidian University in northwest China's Shaanxi Province has made significant progress on the Sun Chasing project, or "Zhuri" in Chinese. The team has developed a ground-based test system for wireless power transmission that can charge multiple moving targets at the same time. In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 percent from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power. The team has also built a wireless charging system for drones. In a test, a drone flying at 30 kilometers per hour was able to receive 143 watts of stable power from 30 meters away. A space solar power station works exactly as its name suggests: a huge array of solar panels placed in orbit. It would collect sunlight in space, where the sun always shines, and then convert that energy into microwaves or lasers to beam dow…

China conducts first experiments for space-based solar power plants ... A research team from China’sXidian Universityhas begun initial experiments under the Sun Chasing project, an initiative aimed at developing large-scale space-based solar power systems. The long-term goal is to deploy orbital solar infrastructure capable of collecting energy in space and transmitting it wirelessly back to Earth or to spacecraft, potentially providing a continuous and weather-independent power source. The research team reports that it has successfully demonstrated wireless power transmission over distances exceeding 100 meters to a stationary target, as well as more than 30 meters to a moving target. According to the project team, these early tests are intended to validate key components of the system, including beam stability and energy delivery accuracy under changing conditions. “In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8% from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power,” the Chinese State Council Information Office said in a statement. “The team has also built a wireless charging system for dr…