The UK has joined the list of nations funding research into space-based solar power. Interest has risen in the past couple of years in the possibility, due to improvements in central aspects of such a setup, such as the efficiency and weight of solar panels, the falling cost of sending up satellites thanks to the likes of SpaceX, and the expected transmission efficiency of high-frequency radio-waves or lasers, to ground-based receivers. Frazer-Nash Consultancy will head the study, funded by the UK Space Agency and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, addressing both the technical side and the question of whether it can become economically viable. The single biggest challenge will be assembling these very large-scale satellites in orbit,…