Space Solar Power
Symposium
A dedicated program block produced by the Space Frontier Foundation — bringing credible voices in Space Solar Power into direct dialogue with utility, grid, and energy industry leaders.
A first-of-its-kind effort for the energy sector
The Space Frontier Foundation is partnering with Experience POWER and Data Center POWER eXchange to add a critically important dimension to the energy industry's conversation about its future. This is a first-of-its-kind effort to bring the Space Solar Power (SSP) conversation directly to utility and energy sector decision-makers — in a sustained, technically grounded half-day program.
The program has three core objectives:
Introduce Space Solar Power to power sector decision-makers in a practical, technically grounded way — not as a distant science project, but as a credible planning horizon item.
Translate SSP into the frameworks energy leaders already use: levelized costs, capacity factor, transmission integration, regulatory pathways — so they leave with a basis for action.
Connect energy system providers to SSP resources and build a sustained support network for early movers who want to begin exploring SSP in their planning and procurement processes.
The Space Frontier Foundation produced the 2025 International Conference on Energy from Space in France, bringing together governments, energy companies, space agencies, startups, and investors. Experience POWER is where that conversation comes to the U.S. energy community.
What you'll gain from this program
Access a new firm power resource
SSP directly addresses intermittency, grid integration, transmission bottlenecks, and long-duration storage limits — in a single dispatchable resource.
Use the frameworks you already know
Sessions translate SSP into levelized cost, capacity factor, and transmission integration terms — not rocket science.
Connect with the ecosystem
Meet startups, government program leaders, researchers, and fellow energy professionals exploring SSP as part of their planning horizon.
Get ahead of the curve
Early movers who explore SSP and build partnerships with industry and government will shape the nation's energy future and secure a lasting edge.
Tentative agenda · Morning of September 30
The half-day program runs on the morning of Wednesday, September 30, 2026, integrated within the broader Experience POWER and Data Center POWER eXchange agenda (September 28 – October 1, Omni Shoreham, Washington, D.C.).
| K | Keynote Framing Space Solar Power Within Future Firm Power Demand Why firm clean power is the defining challenge of the energy transition, and why SSP belongs in the room. |
| 1 | Panel Technology and timeline: Grounded in Reality Where the hardware actually stands, recent demonstrations, near-term milestones, and an honest assessment of proven versus still-ahead. |
| 2 | Panel Economics, grid integration, and deployment LCOE, capacity factors, transmission integration, and how SSP fits into models energy planners already use. |
| 3 | Panel Policy, regulatory pathways, and governance The U.S. and international regulatory landscape — what's in place, what's needed, and where government and industry can move together. |
| 4 | Panel The commercial SSP landscape Who is building, who is funding, and where the first commercial opportunities are forming — startups, investors, and government programs. |
| W | Workshop Scenario Planning and Roadmap to Sustained Engagement Participants work through real energy system scenarios and leave with a concrete next step. |
| K | Keynote Reimagining Possibilities with Space Solar Power A forward-looking close on what the energy system looks like when SSP is part of the mix, and the opportunity for early movers. |
Coming soon
Speakers and panelists for most sessions have been contacted and confirmed. The program brings together Space Solar Power technologists, utility and grid leaders, policy officials, investors, and commercial developers.
Full speaker list coming soon.
Why Space Solar Power, why now?
Space Solar Power collects solar energy in orbit and transmits it wirelessly to Earth via proven microwave or laser techniques. Because satellites receive near-constant sunlight unobstructed by atmosphere or weather, SSP delivers 24/7 uninterrupted, zero-carbon, dispatchable power — independent of weather, seasons, or geography. It is a grid-level resource, not a niche technology, and a complement to terrestrial renewables, not a replacement.
For energy professionals, SSP is best understood on the terms that matter most to grid planners and utility operators:
SSP directly addresses the structural problems energy professionals deal with daily: intermittency, grid integration complexity, transmission bottlenecks, and the rising cost and physical limits of long-duration storage. It does not incrementally optimize around those constraints — it removes them at the source.
Recent milestones accelerating SSP
Despite rapid global progress, most energy professionals have not yet encountered Space Solar Power as a credible near-term energy option. That gap is closing fast.
DARPA, 2025 — Beamed over 800 W of power via laser across 8.6 km for 30 seconds, setting new distance and duration world records for terrestrial wireless power transmission.
U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, 2025–26 — Preparing end-to-end in-orbit microwave beaming demonstrations.
Japan, 2026 — Set to test beaming 1 kW of solar energy from a satellite in low Earth orbit to Earth via microwaves.
China Academy of Space Technology — Advancing large-scale wireless power transmission and planning orbital tests in 2028, with first MW-scale SSP plants targeted in 2030.
Caltech SSPD-1 mission, 2023 — Successfully tested lightweight structures, solar cells, and microwave transmitters in orbit, beaming power wirelessly in space.
U.S. and UK startups — Backed by over $100M including Breakthrough Energy, targeting in-orbit solar power demonstrations by 2028.
High-efficiency space-grade solar panels and reusable heavy launch vehicles are now maturing simultaneously — creating an enabling convergence that did not exist even five years ago. NASA's 2024 analysis suggests SSP could match or surpass terrestrial intermittent renewables on LCOE at $30–80/MWh by 2050. European and UK studies estimate comparable competitiveness with dispatchable renewables at €88–156/MWh.
Space Frontier Foundation
The Space Frontier Foundation is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to opening the space frontier to benefit humanity through the power of free enterprise. Outside the space industry, Space Solar Power is undervalued as a potential energy solution. The Foundation listens to the energy community, connects it with SSP innovators, and translates the technology's value in practical terms — to accelerate market arrival.
The Foundation produced the 2025 International Conference on Energy from Space in France, bringing together governments, energy companies, space agencies, startups, and investors. The event demonstrated strong global momentum and cross-sector demand for SSP engagement. Experience POWER is where that conversation comes to the U.S. energy community — in the room where decisions are made.
Contact: Srikanth Raviprasad · srikanth.raviprasad@spacefrontier.org
Attend the Space Solar Power Symposium
The Space Solar Power Symposium is included as part of the Experience POWER and Data Center POWER eXchange conference — no additional fee required.
The Space Solar Power Symposium is included at no extra cost when you register to attend Experience POWER and/or Data Center POWER eXchange.
Register Now →September 28 – October 1, 2026 · Omni Shoreham, Washington, D.C.
Sponsor the Space Solar Power Symposium
Sponsoring the Space Solar Power Symposium places your organization in front of the utility, grid, and energy industry leaders who will shape how this technology enters the grid. This is a room of decision-makers — and a conversation that will only grow.
- Complimentary access to the Space Solar Power Symposium for one member of your organization
- Reduced-price access to Experience Power and Data Center POWER eXchange for one or more people
- Logo on Experience Power 2026 marketing materials and website
- Logo on spacefrontier.org as a key supporter
- All Tier I benefits
- Dedicated meter board in the SSP program area — direct visibility to energy industry attendees
- Dedicated table with time for presentations of your technology and company
- All Tier I & II benefits
- Facilitated 1-to-1 introductions with Experience Power and Data Center POWER eXchange attendees
- Private dinner with energy leaders
- Discounted sponsorship tiers for the Energy from Space 2027 conference
To discuss sponsorship, contact: Srikanth Raviprasad · srikanth.raviprasad@spacefrontier.org
Ready to attend?
Experience POWER 2026 · Omni Shoreham · Washington, D.C. · September 28 – October 1, 2026
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