As China pushes to take the global lead in building space-based solar power stations, a new study warns that powerful lasers beaming energy back to Earth could pose serious risks to other satellites in the increasingly crowded low-Earth orbit.
If these beams miss their targets – because of tracking errors or system malfunctions – they could strike nearby spacecraft, overheat solar panels or trigger electrical discharges, according to a team from the Beijing Institute of Satellite Environment Engineering.
Such discharges can induce unintended currents, potentially damaging on-board electronics and forcing an emergency shutdown. The risk is greater when the laser beam is more energetic or uses shorter wavelengths, the team reported in the January issue of the Chinese journal High Power Laser and Particle Beams.