B. SPACE TECHNOLOGY SYNERGY The launching of Sputnik on October 4, 1957, and the dramatic unmanned and manned space pioneering efforts marked the entry into the space age which irrevocably changed the evolutionary direction of planet Earth's civilization. The consciousness of the uniqueness of planet Earth, and the tangible demonstration that the tools of the space age promised an unlimited extension of new knowledge of the solar system had a most profound influence on advances in technology. These advances not only made it possible to develop satellites for Earth's observations and communications as well as for scientific purposes, but also significantly contributed to the development of electronics and computer technologies. The synergism between space technology and efforts to harness solar energy could be used to overcome terrestrial obstacles to the conversion of solar energy such as inclement weather and the diurnal cycle. If satellites could be used for communications and for Earth observations, then it is also logical to consider satellites that could convert solar energy and place them in an orbit, e.g., geosynchronous orbit (GEO), where they could generate power for Earth continuously during most of the year. With a year-round conversion capability, such satellites could overcome not only the major obstacles to solar base-load power generation on Earth, i.e., means for energy storage and ineffective use of capital-intensive solar energy conversion devices, but to develop the technology for solar energy conversion in space on a scale which may not be possible on Earth because zero gravity and the absence of terrestrial influences no longer contain the size of a contiguous structure. The way to harness solar energy effectively would be to move the solar energy conversion devices off the surface of the Earth and place them in orbit away from the Earth's active environment where they would be continuously exposed to the sun. The most favorable orbit for solar energy conversion would, of course, be around the sun, but GEO is a reasonable compromise at this stage of space technology development because solar energy in GEO is available for 24 hours a day during most of the year. The "one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind" taken in July, 1969, set the stage for what still is the nearly imperceptible movement of humanity beyond the Earth's surface. It is in this context that the SPS represents one of the significant steps which could utilize the immense resources within the solar system and beyond in the continuing quest to expand the evolutionary niche of the human species. C. SPS CONCEPT AND OBJECTIVES The solar power satellite concept (SPS) challenged the view prevalent in the 1960's that solar energy conversion methods could not make a significant contribution to energy economies, and demonstrated that there are no a priori limits on the development of energy resources in space. The SPS concept although not a panacea for increasingly complex energy supply, environmental and societal problems could open up a new evolutionary direction to influence the future course of energy resource and human development. As originally conceived^ the SPS would convert solar energy into electricity and feed it into microwave generators forming part of a planar, phased-array transmitting antenna. The antenna would precisely direct a microwave beam of very low power density to one or more receiving antennas at desired locations on Earth. (An SPS system would include a number of large satellites in GEO orbit, each beaming power to one or more
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