existing data. No environmental problem has yet been identified which would preclude the development of the satellite power system technology. To increase the certainty of the assessment, some research has been initiated and long-term research is being planned. The current environmental assessment has been summarized in the Preliminary Environmental Assessment for SPS.2 The final revision of the Preliminary Environmental Assessment will be completed later this year. MICROWAVE HEALTH AND ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS The Satellite Power Reference System delivers microwave power developed on the solar collecting satellites in geosynchronous orbit to the very large receiving antennas (rectennas) on the earth's surface. The power beam is an unmodulated continuous wave at a frequency of 2.45 GHz. This task is concerned with the effects of this microwave beam on the health of the SPS worker in space and on earth, the health of the general population, and the ecosystem. In the Reference System the power density at the center of the beam near the transmitting antenna in space would be as high as 2200 mW/cm2. The power density of the beam at the center of the rectenna is 23 mW/cm2 and the power density as a function of distance from the center of the rectenna is shown in Figure 1. The power density at the edge of the rectenna is 1 mW/cm2 and 0.1 mW/cm2 Fig. 1. SPS Microwave Power Density Characteristics at Rectenna Sites
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