Commercializing Space-Based Solar Power: A Conversation with Virtus Solis Technologies & Space Solar 🚀⚡️

What if solar power were no longer intermittent - and we had access to clean, 24/7 energy from the sun? Stanford Student Space Initiative and Stanford Energy Club welcome Dr. Ed Tate (CTO of Virtus Solis Technologies), Sam Adlen (Co-CEO of Space Solar), and Owen Liu (founder of Stanford's first space economy course) for a technical debate on the future of space-based solar power. Once relegated to science fiction, Space-Based Solar Power (SBSP) is rapidly becoming an actionable solution to Earth's climate crisis. As plummeting launch costs and breakthroughs in microwave wireless transmission bring this technology closer to reality, a new orbital frontier is opening for clean energy. Our panel of industry pioneers and academic experts will unpack the cutting-edge physics, orbital economics, and manufacturing challenges behind SBSP. We will dive into what it takes to build gigawatt-scale solar arrays in geostationary orbit, manage high-efficiency power beaming through the atmosphere, and scale a commercially viable space-to-ground energy pipeline. Whether your interests lie in aerospace engineering, materials science, or climate tech investing, join us to learn how we can take the energy transition into orbit.