‘Sunlight on Demand’: U.S. Approves Test of Giant Space Mirror to Redirect Sunlight
The demonstration satellite will unfurl a 60-foot reflective surface as the company tests technology it says could support 50,000 mirror satellites by 2035.
- On Friday, the Federal Communications Commission granted California-based startup Reflect Orbital a license to launch its first demonstration satellite, Earendil-1, a spacecraft with a reflective surface measuring about 60 feet targeted to fly later this year.
- Reflect Orbital aims to operate 50,000 or more mirror-craft in low Earth orbit by 2035, beaming reflected sunlight to customers and potentially boosting electricity generation from solar arrays like The Topaz Solar Farm.
- The company's website states it designs for safety in three ways: the light is contained, can be turned off, and avoids sensitive areas on Earth, adding that light cannot be concentrated past maximum natural sunlight irradiance.
- John Barentine, an astronomer at Silverado Hills Observatory in Tucson, Arizona, and consultant at Dark Sky Consulting, warned the beam is "four times brighter than the full moon," affecting wildlife via atmospheric scattering.
- CEO Ben Nowack called the license the first step toward testing the technology's efficacy, stating the company is "excited to demonstrate how our technology works" and introduce clean technology the world urgently needs.
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To be able to use sunlight at night as well, Reflect Orbital plans to place 50,000 mirrored satellites into orbit around the Earth. They have now received permission to launch the first prototype.
Southern California Company Receives Approval to Test Space Mirror
A Southern California-based company just received approval to test a space mirror. Last Thursday, the FCC issued a license to Reflect Orbital, an energy company based in Hawthorne. The mirror would reflect sunlight to the dark parts of Earth. The license allows the company to launch a satellite using certain frequencies for telemetry, tracking, and command, and data downlink to support deployment and testing of a solar reflector. Reflect Orb…
Neither the warnings of astronomers nor the complaints of the public have prevented it. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has authorized Reflect Orbital its controversial giant space mirror to reflect sunlight on demand. The Californian company intends to launch the first prototype, called Earendil-1, this same year to reach 50,000 by 2035. The goal is to power solar panels, illuminate hidden areas or provide light to rescue teams…
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