Can space lasers really beam power down to Earth?

A coming experiment will test power beaming between spacecraft. It is an early engineering demonstration, not a working power grid, and major efficiency, cost, and safety questions remain.

A planned Star Catcher experiment is an early power-beaming test, not a working orbital grid. Space can provide long periods of unfiltered sunlight, but a useful system still has to turn that light into electricity, transmit energy accurately, convert it again at the receiver, control the beam safely, and beat terrestrial costs. The first test is important because it can measure those losses between spacecraft.

Also on the space calendar, Crew-13 is scheduled to launch Thursday, October 1 at 11:10 a.m. EDT with Jessica Watkins, Luke Delaney, Joshua Kutryk, and Sergey Teteryatnikov; launch schedules can change, so confirm with the official countdown.