Solar Power Satellites

[shin_getter]

Kind of a weird question, but have there been studies on putting a rectenna on a ship for space solar powered ship?

Bypassing fuel logistics for vehicles seems to have space solar's big potential advantage as it doesn't have to compete with stationary power infrastructure. You don't want nuclear powered ships all over the place either.

 

[Orionblamblam]

Kind of a weird question, but have there been studies on putting a rectenna on a ship for space solar powered ship?

It would require a *big* rectenna. Peak power on the ground would be something like 200 watts/square meter. Big cargo ships require something like 20 megawatt engines. So your rectenna would need to be 100,000 square meters, assuming the SPS is directly overhead. the further north/south it is, the bigger the rectenna. the Nimitz class supercarrier flight deck is about 18,200 square meters, so you'll need five and a half of them. For one ship.

You don't want nuclear powered ships all over the place either.

Speak for yourself. I want an all-nuclear US Navy and an all-nuclear US commercial fleet. *Thousands* of enormous vessels plying the sealanes flying Old Glory and packing reactors. Once that's accomplished, ban fossil-fueled vessels over a certain tonnage from US waters.

 

[publiusr]

Rigid airships, rectennas and ion wind might be a better match than mammoth surface vessels.

The dirigible IS the rectenna with ion wind blades sticking through the envelope.

An air warp nacelle.

Closest thing to Star Trek we are ever likely to have---outside of supercavs'

Beam power to airship used as a "lifter" for silent flight and no moving parts---no engine noise.

 

[Byeman]

The dirigible IS the rectenna with ion wind blades sticking through the envelope.

Useless in real weather.