Space Solar Power Will Inevitably Trump Trump's Energy Policy

The article critiques former President Donald Trump’s fossil-fuel–friendly energy policy, highlighting its reliance on a narrow definition of “reliable” power as steady, base-load electricity primarily provided by fossil fuels. While Trump’s policy excludes intermittent renewables like wind and solar, it does include other renewable sources such as biomass, geothermal, hydropower, marine energy, and nuclear power, which are gradually reducing fossil fuels’ share in the US energy mix. However, the article argues that an emerging technology—space-based solar power (SBSP)—is poised to disrupt this framework by providing continuous, 24/7 solar energy harvested in space and beamed wirelessly to Earth, fully meeting the reliability standard Trump emphasized. Space solar power, once a futuristic concept first proposed by Isaac Asimov in 1941, has gained momentum due to technological advances such as cheaper rocket launches and lightweight solar cells. Since 2011, research programs like CalTech’s and private startups including Overview Energy and Hel