Solar Power in a Future Martian Lifestyle - by AstroUniverse
Future Mars explorers who settle in the mid-latitudes of the planet could use photovoltaics for power. Note the locations of other missions previously sent to Mars. Many are also in the same regions and have used solar power for some aspects of their explorations. Credit: Anthony Abel and Aaron Berliner, UC Berkeley)
If our future Martians settle in the mid-latitudes, particularly around the planet’s equatorial regions, solar power stations could trump nuclear. Why is this? First of all, the mid-latitudes get a lot of sunlight, so why not take advantage of that? Second, solar power cells weigh less than nuclear power plants. To get the same power as a nuclear plant, new-generation solar tech would only take up about 8.3 tons of cargo. That’s a significant weight saving over nuclear.
The cool news? All this solar power goodness is possible with current photovoltaic technologies. And, of course, the technology is always improving, so by the time a Mars mission is ready to lift off, whole new versions of today’s solar cells will be ready to use. “The silicon panels that you have on your roof, with steel construction, glass backing, and so on, just won’t compete with the new and improved nuclear,” said Abel in a
, “But these newer lightweight, flexible panels all of a sudden really, really change that conversation.”The advantages of solar on Mars outweigh the problems. Even though colonists might have to clear the dust off the cells every so often, their lighter weight means that more panels could be sent to Mars. That includes backups for the main systems. As newer, lighter cells come online, solar power could be the main source of power for future Martian colonies.
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