will be carried out mainly by the Ariane-5. An Ariane-5 ASAP ring is planned and could probably be used to launch a similar experiment (possibly even one of greater size), but the time-frame for such a system is presently unknown. 10.1.6 Alternative Possibilities The design presented above was oriented at producing a quick and dirty solution to the problem. As an alternative, or a follow-up mission, it might be interesting to try a similar experiment on a slightly larger scale. Using a dedicated launch of a Pegasus or Delta to put a larger inflatable collector into a higher orbit has very interesting possibilities. Echo 1 and 2, launched in 1960 and 1964, were aluminized mylar balloons of 30.5 and 40 meters in diameter, respectively. They were the first manmade objects in space to be visible from Earth with the naked eye. Over thirty years later it should surely be possible to produce an inflatable reflector of 100 or even 200 meters in diameter. Such a large satellite could receive tens of kilowatts of power in a relatively debris-free 1200 km polar orbit and really give some interesting insights into the problems of transmitting and receiving high power levels. Or if distance beaming or long-term continuous beaming was the technology that needed to be demonstrated, such a large structure could receive significant levels of power even at GEO. At the other end of the spectrum, it has been suggested that some military satellites for electronic eavesdropping may already have on board equipment capable of receiving and measuring incident microwave power. A program using these existing assets instead of requiring launch of a separate satellite would cost next to nothing.
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