In space the sun is always shining, the tilt of the Earth doesn't prevent the collection of power and there’s no atmosphere to reduce the intensity of the sun’s rays. Some 30 percent of all incoming solar radiation never makes it to ground level. On earth, solar power is greatly reduced by night, cloud cover, atmosphere and seasonality. In the last few years, however, scientists around the globe - and several researchers at the Energy Department’s own Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) - have shown how recent technological developments could make this concept a reality. The idea of capturing solar power in space for use as energy on Earth has been around since the beginning of the space age.

While the Energy Department is not actively researching SBSP, we hope you’ll take a moment to learn about this far out concept. Since it’s Space Week, we thought it'd be appropriate to look at one promising, but futuristic, idea that could change the face of solar power generation: Space-Based Solar Power (SBSP). Use the hashtag #SpaceWeek to join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Instagram. Check back every day this week for new videos, interactive graphics, timelines and more - and submit your questions for our Lab Twitter chat on dark energy, happening this Friday, March 7. We're exploring the solar system (and beyond) to highlight the contributions of the Energy Department and our National Labs to the U.S.

A day in space