China getting closer to launch of space-based photovoltaic station

China has brought forward by two years of its programme to launch a solar power plant in space that will beam energy back down to Earth.

A similar energy project had been proposed by NASA more than two decades ago but was never developed, while the UK government-commissioned independent research supporting a £16 billion British version in orbit by 2035, Sky News reports.

The first launch for China's project is scheduled for 2028 when a trial satellite orbiting at a distance of around 400km (248 miles) will test the technology used to transmit energy from the power plant.

This satellite will "convert solar energy to microwaves or lasers and then direct the energy beams to various targets, including fixed locations on Earth and moving satellites" according to the South China Morning Post.

The plans were detailed in a peer-reviewed paper published in the journal Chinese Space Science and Technology.

According to the UK-funded research on space-based solar power, satellites in geosynchronous orbit receive sunlight for more than 99% of the time - and at a much greater intensity than solar panels on Earth.

The idea is "collecting this abundant solar power in orbit, and beaming it securely to a fixed point" on Earth, said the UK-funded paper.

These beams could also be directed to other nations "either as an energy export, or as part of our overseas development aid, or to support humanitarian disaster areas".

Unlike terrestrial renewable energy sources, orbiting solar power plants would be able to deliver energy day and night on Earth, at any time of year and regardless of the weather.