Start-up announces plans to sell sunlight!
Imagine a company that sells sunlight, just like how chocolates and chips are sold in various shops.
Meet Reflect Orbital, a super fun company from California, USA. Their big idea is to deliver sunlight even after sunset.
Ben Nowack, the boss of Reflect Orbital, says solar power can provide all the energy we need.
Solar panels play an important role in helping generate solar power, but when the sun sets, they don’t receive sunlight. So, solar farms are unable to generate energy at night.
Hence, the company plans to redirect sunlight onto solar panels on Earth's surface at night. This way, they can "sell" sunlight to those in need.
How do they plan to make it possible?
The company plans to launch many small satellites into space. These satellites will have huge mirrors that will help reflect sunlight back down to solar farms on Earth.
Using the satellites, the company can offer solar farms an additional 30 minutes of sunlight. With this extra sunlight, these farms can make even more energy to power homes.
The company held tests.
The company held tests to determine whether their plan would work! They attached a giant mirror to a hot-air balloon to test it out.
They tested it for weeks, and finally, it worked! The mirror reflected sunlight to solar panels, helping generate energy.
Reflect Orbital’s satellites are set to launch in 2025, and organisations can apply to the company to “buy sunlight.” How awesome is that?
