Comment by joshmarinacci

I've always wondered (especially after a Dr Hossenfelder video about it). Even if we figured out all of the tech to get such a solar cell satellite into orbit for a reasonable cost, they still need a giant ground station to accept the power. How much power would that ground station generate if it was simply a bunch of solar cells instead of microwave receiver? A space cell might get power 24/7, but if 75% is lost in the conversion, how is that better than a ground based cell that gets power for only 6 hours a day?