Moon as Solar Power Plant?

[Bob137]

A Japanese Corporation has come up with a new idea, (From Inhabitat)
Man hasn’t been back to the moon since 1972, but that hasn’t stopped a team of Japanese engineers from developing a plan to turn our celestial neighbor into a massive solar power plant. The disaster at the Fukushima nuclear power station has made Japan think more seriously about alternative energy, and as a result Shimizu Corporation‘s crazy plan has been gaining traction. The plan calls for a massive 12 mile-wide, 6,800 mile long “Luna Ring” of solar panels to be constructed on the moon’s surface. The solar belt would then harness solar power directly from the sun and then beam it straight to Earth via microwaves and lasers.

Read more: Japanese Corporation Plans to Turn the Moon Into a Massive Solar Power Plant | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World

This is interesting, and a good plan, what do you all think, could there be an even better plan than this?

[Pons Asinorum]

Applaud it, but my first question is why the Moon? – it has a day and night cycle (which means periods of non-production, same problem with solar power here) and it is too far away (sending energy via a microwave beam means an appreciable loss due to attenuation (inverse square law) – from here to the Moon, huge losses).

Placing a large solar power station in orbit can eliminate any down time (no night) and greatly decrease the delivery distance (relatively, much lower power losses due to attenuation).

(Shoot, why is not NASA working on this?)

[Bob137]

I agree Pons, you would think NASA or some other large corporation would come up with a solar power space station, which could be better utilzed by rotating and continuation of solar power, instead of like the moon concept. I am still boggled by the small space station we currently have, which is not much in the way for space exploration, or a way station concept. You would think by now they would have had a much large space station for which it could be utilized for craft to refill and replenish, and then go on to the moon, and return to the space station for refueling and then back to earth onto other areas of our solar system, and then another space station around another planet for the same process, etc... Our space program sure got off on a fast start, and then slowed to a snails progress.

[Ace Rimmer]

What if the Moon is already being used by somebody else. They might have warned or shoed us off of there after the Moon Landing. (OMG ! those pesky Humans are here)

But anyway, a Solar Power plant someplace would be good.

[Bob137]

I know there is much speculation of an Et's moon base, which is very possible. I think what we really need for energy purposes is what is called free energy. There are numerous people engineers and such around the world, that are working on these Tesla type devices, and they have very promising results. Hey Metaluna, now I know how to spell Annunaki correctly, from my Avatar! Thanks.

[Moon]

That sounds like an expensive project, but it would ultimately pay us back in the end. I do hope they are serious about this as it might signal the time to start colonizing the Moon.

[Bob137]

Yes, I think colonizing the moon would be great, as long as they do not try and use Nukes to mine with, such as portrayed in The Time Machine Movie, that would suck if the moon got blown up!

[Moon]

Yes, I think colonizing the moon would be great, as long as they do not try and use Nukes to mine with, such as portrayed in The Time Machine Movie, that would suck if the moon got blown up!

The easiest way would be to use the robot drills like they have in most mines today. Plus they would not want to contaminate any water on the Moon as it could be used to support a colony.

[armedequation]

if it was a space station I would hope that they put it in orbit around something other than earth or the moon. If not then have something in the works to keep it from falling out of orbit into said places.

I am very happy to see this but a part of me is a little sad that this way of thinking hasnt been followed through on sooner....

i guess i have to keep in mind that while its a snails progress, that it is still progress

[Pons Asinorum]

Did a bit of searching to see why the moon is more optimal than a space station for power production (provided the Transformers are okay with us being on the moon ). Here is what I found:

The cost difference -- between transporting the solar power infrastructure into an earth orbit versus manufacturing it out of the raw materials on the moon -- is estimated to be quite large and in favor of the lunar option.

The solar power infrastructure would be manufactured on site and then placed in optimal locations all over the moon so that power production would occur continuously. The transmission-attenuation loss is minimized because the electricity is converted into a microwave beam, which greatly reduces power loss due to the inverse-square law. The power is then sent to earth receiving stations and reconverted into electricity, which is done at better than 85% tested efficiency-rates.

Here is a 2002 paper on that subject:

http://www.aip.org/tip/INPHFA/vol-8/iss-2/p12.pdf

[Bob137]

Thanks Pons, that sounds logical to me, but a process of putting this on the moon, would require a shuttle craft more advanced than what we were utilizing, I wonder if that is in the works also! I know that moon bases have been designed, but haven't found anything definite on a shuttle craft. I still think it would be more logical, to go to the space station, then a shuttle to the moon, but that would require a much larger and more advanced space station also. So it seems to me, someone is going to have to come up with a lot of money for this to become practical.

[Pons Asinorum]

$$$$ ---> oh yeah, for sure, totally agree -- new shuttle, new technology, new all-kinds-of-stuff.

Not sure what the actual cost would be to start this thing up (staggering for sure), but if successful, the long term outlook...well, it would replace OPEC and give us the keys to the world commercial energy production. Dollar-wise, maybe hundreds-of-billions short-term in exchange for hundreds-of-trillions long-term:

$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$ ---> input
$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$ ---> output

Classic risk vs reward.

Not to mention, we would have a really cool lunar-base

--

A shame that as a country, our leadership has decided to abandon a meaningful space program.

If Japan is able to pull-off something like this, they would be the next Saudi Arabia, energy-wise. For that matter, same for China which has an active lunar program.

[Bob137]

I know it just makes me sick to think we are falling behind due to the greedy stupid stinky monkey lizard people!

[Moon]

The lunar base would also be a great area to launch manned rockets to Mars and other areas until other alternative ways make it so rocket fuel is not needed. Also, lunar colonies could help ease an over crowded Earth in the near future.

[Bob137]

Those are more good reason for building a lunar base! Also a setup of stellar telescopes from the moon would be a great benefit for astronomers, and maybe we could find out more about space.