zlacker

[return to "xAI joins SpaceX"]
1. gok+h4[view] [source] 2026-02-02 22:06:22
>>g-mork+(OP)
> it is possible to put 500 to 1000 TW/year of AI satellites into deep space, meaningfully ascend the Kardashev scale and harness a non-trivial percentage of the Sun’s power

We currently make around 1 TW of photovoltaic cells per year, globally. The proposal here is to launch that much to space every 9 hours, complete with attached computers, continuously, from the moon.

edit: Also, this would capture a very trivial percentage of the Sun's power. A few trillionths per year.

◧◩
2. dtj112+Oq1[view] [source] 2026-02-03 07:23:30
>>gok+h4
Whilst I agree that this glosses over a huge number of technical obstacles, space based solar power could scale more easily than that on earth. Lack of variable weather and gravity means rather than using photovoltaic cells, you can just set up paper thin huge mirrors to focus light and generate steam.

Caveat: my understanding of this largely comes from the book The High Frontier, which is really old and probably inaccurate. I can't think of a reason why this particular point would be wrong though.

◧◩◪
3. mrguyo+hy3[view] [source] 2026-02-03 19:18:06
>>dtj112+Oq1
>space based solar power could scale more easily than that on earth.

Actually provide an argument instead of just asserting this.

On earth, deployment of a built solar panel is screwing it into a dirt cheap frame on the ground.

To deploy a solar panel in space, you must attach it to a satellite that no one involved has even pretended to claim is designed, so you need a factory for those on the same order of magnitude as your panels, you need enough boost capacity, so a factory for rockets, and a much larger fuel industry, and then you need all the immense engineering required to do any of that at all, and then you need to spin up the industries to supply this brand new industry, and then you need to manage all those satellites in space, and then you still don't get any actual power because it's all in space so you haven't scaled SHIT

It's all absolute horseshit. No, none of this is planned. He's just going to cash in on the IPO.

◧◩◪◨
4. dtj112+ml6[view] [source] 2026-02-04 14:56:58
>>mrguyo+hy3
I think what's happened here is that you've interpreted my passing comment about something I find interesting to mean that I don't think this is a ploy to pocket vast sums of cash, and written a takedown for an argument that I'm not making.
[go to top]