Florida-based startup Star Catcher is preparing to launch a prototype system aboard a SpaceX rocket this week, aiming to perform the first-ever transmission of energy between two untethered spacecraft. If successful, the mission will validate a new method for generating and beaming solar power in orbit, a technology critical for future space industries such as data centers.
The concept of generating solar power in space has existed for decades, appearing in science fiction as early as a 1941 piece by Isaac Asimov and undergoing NASA studies in the 1970s. However, historian of space technology Hanieh Fattahi from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light notes that the idea remained impractical for years because launching heavy hardware into orbit was prohibitively expensive.
Today, declining launch costs are making orbital energy generation feasible. “There isn’t a power grid in space,” said Andrew Rush, CEO and co-founder of Star Catcher. “Everybody just goes on these little camping trips.”
Star Catcher’s solution involves an array of satellites referred to as “power nodes,” which function as both power plants and transmission lines. These satellites use concentrated lenses to gather sunlight and refine it into laser wavelengths that the company claims can deliver up to ten times more power than diffuse sunlight. The resulting laser beam acts as an ethereal cable, directed at receiving satellites’ solar panels.
Reducing the need for large onboard batteries allows satellite operators to free up mass for additional instruments or, in the case of space data centers, more GPUs. This efficiency is particularly valuable in an era where launch costs remain measured in thousands of dollars per kilogram.
Investor interest in the technology appears strong. Earlier this year, the company announced a $65 million funding round and secured a $30 million award from the US Space Force. Additionally, Star Catcher has signed 40 letters of intent and ten long-term power purchase agreements with prospective buyers.
The upcoming launch carries further significance beyond Star Catcher’s system. Google’s first attempt to establish a space-based data center is also hitching a ride on the same SpaceX mission, signaling growing optimism for commercial industries operating in orbit.
Could you clarify how they handle beam divergence over long distances? Wouldn’t that drastically cut efficiency?
Wait, so Google is literally building a data center in space now? That is wild and absolutely fascinating stuff.
Sixty-five million dollars? Sounds like plenty, but orbital laser physics is brutal. Skeptical it works smoothly.
Finally! Decades of sci-fi concepts becoming real. This changes everything for space infrastructure.