Chinese researchers have built a wireless power transmission system capable of beaming kilowatt-level energy to multiple moving targets simultaneously, potentially a major step towards building space-based solar power stations.

The team completed a groundbreaking full-chain ground verification platform for such a system in 2022 and have now successfully tested the ability to beam power to multiple moving targets simultaneously.

Built around a 75-metre (245-foot) tower at Xidian University in Xian, the facility was designed to test the whole energy transmission process on Earth before any orbital deployment.

The system, developed by senior engineer Duan Baoyan, reportedly transmitted 1,180 watts across distances of about 100 metres while maintaining precise microwave beam control – something that is considered critical for eventually powering satellites, drones or lunar infrastructure wirelessly.

The team also tested a drone that received microwave power while flying at 30km/h (18mph). In the test, the drone received 143 watts from about 30 metres away, according to state news agency Xinhua.

The system achieved an overall wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 per cent, meaning about one-fifth of the original electrical energy was successfully delivered and converted back into usable power, Xinhua said.

By comparison, a microwave power transmission experiment by Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1975 reported an overall efficiency of 54 per cent, but that test was conducted under tightly controlled conditions rather than while tracking and powering moving targets.