DARPA has started the first phase of the POWER (Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay) program, which aims to revolutionize the distribution of energy by transmitting power wirelessly in the air.
The RTX Corporation, Draper, and BEAM Co. will each lead a team in the development of a wireless optical power relay. Demonstrating the fundamental elements of a resilient, light-speed energy network is a primary objective of the program.
Dr. Paul Jaffe, who directs the POWER program at DARPA, said, “This project has the potential to advance power beaming by orders of magnitude, which could radically reshape society’s relationship with energy.” “A wireless energy web could unlock power from new and diverse sources, including space, and connect them rapidly and reliably to energy-starved consumers.”
The optical energy relays conceived in the first phase of the POWER project will be demonstrated in pods carried by existing aircraft in the second phase in order to facilitate rapid development. Future aircraft could be significantly smaller and less expensive if fuel storage and engine size are drastically reduced by power beaming.
In the future, these new, small, distributed platforms could provide military missions with inexpensive aircraft that have limitless range and endurance.
In the third and final phase of the program, the relays will be demonstrated by transmitting 10 kilowatts of optical energy via an airborne optical path to a ground receiver located 200 kilometers from the ground source laser.
The first phase will last for 20 months and feature benchtop demonstrations of key technologies, with an additional 3-month option to carry out further risk reduction work. A public call for proposals will be issued in the first half of 2025, with the second phase focusing on incorporating relay technologies into an existing platform for a low-power, airborne demonstration.