An orbiting mirror designed to reflect sunlight onto solar farms after dark has received regulatory approval from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Developed by Californian start-up Reflect Orbital, the aim is to have a constellation of satellites in space that reflect sunlight onto existing solar farms on Earth after sunset. Solar panels only generate energy when the sun shines on them, but this technology allows that existing infrastructure to continue producing electricity during the night.
The FCC has granted Reflect Orbital a license to launch and operate its first demonstration satellite, called Earendil-1. Once it’s reached low-Earth orbit (LEO), an 18 metres by 18 metres reflective surface will unfurl. The startup plans to launch Earendil-1 later this year.
If successful, the aim is to operate 50,000 or more such sunlight-reflecting satellites in LEO by 2035. These future production models will be substantially larger with each reflective surface measuring roughly...