NSBE Alumni Arsenal - November 2009

entire Moon with solar panels to harness this entire study and will be making recommendations to the US
amount of energy. Just a small amount is sufficient. government based on what we learn this year. The
The projected US energy needs of 28 billion BOE by results of our legislative activity will be shared with the
2100 equates to 0.04% of the lunar solar energy. Even Society at the 36
th
National Convention in Toronto,
assuming absurdly high conversion losses, less than Canada, March 31 – April 4, 2010.
one percent of the Moon’s solar energy can eliminate
America’s energy dependence.
Acryonyms Used in this article
• EPA - Environmental Protection Agency
Of course, one cannot run an extension cord from • AIAA — American Institute of Aeronautics and
Earth to the Moon to obtain this energy or send a Astronautics
freighter to carry it like oil. It must be transmitted • JPL - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
wirelessly. Power beaming is a relatively unknown
technology, despite various aspects of it having been
demonstrated in multiple experiments since the 1890s,
THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF
BLACK ENGINEERS
most notably a JPL experiment in 1975 that beamed
ALUMNI EXTENSION
30 kW across a 1 mile distance at 84% efficiency.
Aerospace Systems
Despite the heritage of power beaming, this is
Conference
not a mature technology. Technical questions exist
at every leg of a potential lunar solar power system.
While the Space SIG believes there is definite promise,
The Alumni Extension of the
we are conducting additional research to understand
National Society of Black
the technological challenges and some of the limiting Engineers announces the
factors that will impact deployment of such a system.
ﬁrst NSBE Aerospace
We know the energy is there, and we know it is pos-
Systems Conference,
sible to retrieve it. The question is how.
scheduled for February
5-10, 2010 in Los Angeles,
The next stage of this analysis will be presented by
California.

the Space SIG at the Region 2 Professional Development
High Level Keynote and
Conference in Greensboro, North Carolina, November
Plenary Speakers!
19-22, 2009. Continued development will be pre-

sented at the Houston Strategic Planning and Research
Industry Training Courses!
Conference in Houston, Texas, January 14-18, 2010
and will lead to the development of the 2010 NSBE
Celestial Torch Awards
Space Policy (also at SPRC). The Space Policy will be
Program!
available for review at the NSBE Aerospace Systems

Conference in Los Angeles, California, February 5-10,
Trade Show Exhibits!
2010, and will be presented by NSBE members to

Corporate Sponsorship
members and staffers of the US Congress during the
Opportunities!
Space Exploration Alliance’s Annual Legislative Blitz in

Washington, DC, February 21-23, 2010.
Abstract Deadline Extended!

The National Aeronautics and Space Act (the
For more information,
legislation that establishes NASA) states that one of contact:
the objectives of NASA is “The establishment of long-
http://www.nsbe-asc.org
range studies of the potential benefits to be gained
conf-chair@nsbe-asc.org
from, the opportunities for, and the problems involved
in the utilization of aeronautical and space activities
for peaceful and scientific purposes.” We suspect
that lunar solar power should indeed be one such
The Official Magazine of the NSBE Alumni Extension November 2009 | Alumni Arsenal • 7
Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 | Page 5 | Page 6 | Page 7 | Page 8 | Page 9 | Page 10 | Page 11 | Page 12 | Page 13 | Page 14 | Page 15 | Page 16 | Page 17 | Page 18 | Page 19 | Page 20 | Page 21 | Page 22 | Page 23 | Page 24 | Page 25 | Page 26 | Page 27 | Page 28 | Page 29 | Page 30 | Page 31 | Page 32 | Page 33 | Page 34 | Page 35 | Page 36 | Page 37 | Page 38 | Page 39 | Page 40 | Page 41 | Page 42