TABLE 4.1 CURRENT OCEANIC AIR TRAFFIC consumption across the day is at the rate of about 15 GW. Assuming a peak to average power ratio of 2, it follows that the peak energy consumption rate is about 30 GW. Further assuming an ’’end-to-end" efficiency (power into the jet engine divided by power into the laser power transmission system) of 20 percent, 30 GW of thermal energy at the aircraft requires an input of 150 GW to the laser power transmission systems in space. Thus to service this level of traffic will require 17 or more full-scale SPS satellites, depending upon the extent to which they have degraded at the time of salvage. The next step is to consider the economics of this salvage use. Taking the cost of jet fuel to be $1.00 per gallon (roughly the present price paid by oceanic aircraft), the cost of the thermal energy derived from this fuel is 23.5 mills/kWh. It is this number which must be compared to the cost of SPS-supplied energy. Takine the operation and maintenance cost for the SPS. in the salvage mode, to be $200 million per year (note that in this salvage mode it is not necessary to continue to refurbish the microwave power transmission system) and assuming that each
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