Star Catcher Industries has achieved a new milestone in long-distance power transmission, successfully beaming 1.1 kW of energy at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida using standard solar panel components. The idea of transmitting solar power wirelessly dates back to 1941, when science fiction author Isaac Asimov first introduced the concept—long before engineer Peter Glaser formalized it in 1968. The premise was elegant: instead of relying on terrestrial solar farms limited by geography, weather, and nighttime darkness, place massive collectors in orbit where sunlight is constant and unobstructed. These collectors would gather solar energy, convert it into microwaves, and beam it down to Earth. While the grand space-based power stations of Asimov’s stories are still decades away, interest in wireless power beaming has revived. Today, engineers are shifting focus toward more practical near-term applications—transferring power not to Earth, but between spacecraft in orbit.

Figure 1. Record Power Beam Achieved by Star Catcher.

Current satellite design is constrained by the limited electricity their solar panels can supply. Generating more power typically means adding much larger arrays, which increases a spacecraft’s size, mass, and launch costs. Star Catcher aims to bypass this limitation with a system similar to DARPA’s, which previously held the wireless power-beaming record at 800 W in June 2025. Instead of producing microwaves, Star Catcher uses a grid of solar panels to power an optical multi-spectrum laser that can be directed toward a client satellite. The laser’s carefully tuned wavelengths are matched to the recipient satellite’s solar panels for maximum absorption. Figure 1 shows Record Power Beam Achieved by Star Catcher.

In essence, the system acts like a massive magnifying glass focused on the target spacecraft, enabling its solar panels to operate far more efficiently without requiring any physical enlargement or modification. According to the company, this approach could boost power output by two to ten times using standard panel components.

The most recent test incorporated several types of solar panel designs and served as preparation for an orbital demonstration scheduled for 2026.

“Our existing Power Purchase Agreements confirm that the market understands both the value and scalability of our technology to revolutionize power delivery beyond Earth,” said Andrew Rush, CEO and Co-Founder of Star Catcher. “These real-world results offer definitive proof of the soundness and maturity of our approach to building a resilient orbital power grid.”

Reference:

1. https://newatlas.com/energy/star-catcher-power-beaming-record/

Cite this article:

Priyadharshini S (2025), Star Catcher Sets New Benchmark in Wireless Power Beaming, Surpassing DARPA Record, AnaTechMaz, pp.248