Writer: H M Remi

Now, imagine if you are a billionaire and are packing for your space journey with all your hi-tech gadgets, what you would care about is probably how you could recharge them. You may say a power bank will do. But what will recharge your power bank? 

When you are 220 miles above Earth, solar energy might be the only source for you to get electricity.
 
The Roll Out Solar Array (ROSA) is what soaks up the sun’s energy to provide electrical power to NASA’s International Space Station (ISS) for the astronauts to carry on their research and science investigations every day.
 
Date back to June 2017, it was the first time for NASA to test the ROSA technology in space after experimenting with it for a few years in vacuum chambers on Earth. The ISS astronauts spacewalked twice for hours to complete the ROSA installation in June 2021. As its name, ROSA can roll up and form a compact cylinder. The flexible and rollable design allows the solar arrays to work the same way a measuring tape unwinds on its spool. 

Generally speaking, space-based solar panels are more durable than the conventional solar panels used in residential and commercial settings down on Earth. It is because the space-based solar panels need to withstand the excessive heat and cold conditions in space, in addition to extreme situations, such as the constant shower of solar radiation. 

Also, space-based solar panels are much more efficient in generating power. They can hit around 34% efficiency, while most commercial solar panels can only reach 15-20% efficiency. For ROSA, during orbital daytime, it can produce a total of 120 kilowatts (120,000 watts) of augmented power. They can generate up to 215 kilowatts (215,000 watts) of power to operate the station with the existing solar arrays. An example for your comparison – an active computer and monitor consume up to 270 watts of power. That means, the solar arrays in space could power 796 computers.

With this power of space-based solar panels, you probably will not need to worry about how you can recharge your gadgets when you go on a space-cation.

And in the upcoming article, we will continue our imaginary journey into space to learn more about space-based solar power (SBSP). Please look forward to it!

Sources:
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-solar-arrays-to-power-nasa-s-international-space-station-research
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/elements/solar_arrays-about.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roll_Out_Solar_Array
https://scitechdaily.com/iss-astronauts-complete-first-roll-out-solar-array-installation-during-6-hour-spacewalk/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/spacewalk-astronauts-space-station-solar-array-installation-2021-06-25/
https://www.solar.com/learn/space-based-solar-vs-conventional-solar-how-are-they-different/

Story Source:
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2021/06/us-eva-75/