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Space-Based Solar Power Promises Constant Energy Delivery

William Attardi on February 12, 2026

Space-based solar power is transitioning from concept to reality, with recent advancements demonstrating the feasibility of transmitting solar energy from orbit to Earth. This technology, which could provide continuous, reliable electricity that isn’t interrupted by weather or geography, is being developed through initiatives such as Japan’s OHISAMA project and Caltech’s Space Solar Power Project. However, the implementation of space-based solar power will require international coordination on orbits, frequencies and safety protocols. The Washington Post

Now Tech Moguls Want to Build Data Centers in Outer Space by Tim Higgins

William Attardi on November 16, 2025

Energy constraints in the artificial-intelligence race are causing tech companies to think out of this world. The world’s richest men are earnestly talking about traveling to outer space to build gigantic data centers to run artificial-intelligence models among the stars. They argue such missions make the most sense for powering energy-hungry operations. Such talk comes as Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket companies are working to make space travel cheaper and routine. It isn’t clear what’s closer to being real: Moon bases or superintelligent AI?  The argument essentially boils down to the belief that AI’s needs are eventually going to grow so great that we need to move to outer space. There the sun’s power can be more efficiently harvested. To be clear, the current economics of space-based data centers don’t make sense. But they could in the future, perhaps as soon as a decade or so from now. Now Tech Moguls Want to Build Data Centers in Outer Space – WSJ

RESEARCH: Tracking the Sun by Berkeley Lab

William Attardi on November 26, 2024

Berkeley Lab’s annual Tracking the Sun report describes trends among grid-connected, distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) and paired PV+storage systems in the United States. For the purpose of this report, distributed solar includes residential systems, roof-mounted non-residential systems, and ground-mounted systems up to 5 MW-AC.  Ground-mounted systems larger than 5 MW-AC are covered in Berkeley Lab’s companion annual report, Utility-Scale Solar.  The latest edition of the report is based on 3.7 million systems installed through year-end 2023, representing roughly 80% of systems installed to date. Tracking the Sun | Energy Markets & Policy (lbl.gov)

Remembering the Solemn Purpose of Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States observed on the last Monday in May to honor and mourn U.S. military personnel who died while serving in the armed forces. The holiday traces its roots to the years immediately following the American Civil War (1861–1865), which caused massive casualties—roughly 620,000 soldiers dead, about 2% of the U.S. population at the time. Communities across the North and South began spontaneously decorating the graves of fallen soldiers with flowers, wreaths, and flags, a practice that gave rise to the original name: Decoration Day. On May 5, 1868, Major General John A. Logan, commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR)—a powerful Union veterans’ organization—issued General Order No. 11. This proclaimed May 30, 1868, as a nationwide “Decoration Day” to honor those who died in the Civil War. After World War I, the holiday expanded to honor all American service members who died in any war, not just the Civil War.  In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act to create more three-day weekends for federal employees. This moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May, effective in 1971, when it was also officially named “Memorial Day.” As one 1868 quote put it: “That Nation which respects and honors its dead, shall ever be respected and honored itself.”