Star Catcher, the company aiming to build the “first energy grid in space”, just announced it has raised $65 million in a Series A funding round. This brings its total capital raised to $88 million.

In a statement announcing the new funding round, the company also stated it aims to launch the first-ever space-based optical power-beaming demonstration later this year. As space startups increasingly seek to deploy terrestrial infrastructure into low Earth orbit, concerns grow about the potentially damaging effects of orbital congestion and space debris.

Star Catcher’s orbital infrastructure plans

Unlike other space-based solar power concepts that aim to beam solar energy to the ground from Earth’s orbit, Star Catcher is looking to beam that energy to nearby spacecraft and satellites. In theory, this would allow space missions to operate for much longer periods.

The company is planning a constellation of roughly 200 satellites to harvest sunlight. That energy would be used to power an optical multi-spectrum laser. The laser, in turn, would transmit the power to nearby space vehicles.

Last year, the company set a new record by beaming 1.1 kW of electricity over a long distance at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, the company’s new funding will go towards making its energy grid in space a reality.

“This investment underscores the conviction that orbital infrastructure is now as fundamental as terrestrial infrastructure,” Andrew Rush, co-founder and CEO of Star Catcher, explained in the company’s press statement. “Every major application driving the space economy—connectivity, computing, security, sensing—is power-limited today. Star Catcher is lifting that ceiling—making it possible to build in orbit at the scale the next century of life on Earth will demand.”

World’s first space-based optical power beaming demonstrator

Star Catcher also highlighted its upcoming flight test. The firm noted that it will launch the “first-ever space-based optical power beaming demonstration later this year.”

According to the company, the mission will mark a foundational step in its plans to build the first energy grid in space. The demonstrator is designed to deliver up to 10x more power to satellites, with no retrofit or custom receiver required.

Star Catcher said this will be the “first of a series of flight missions designed to progressively retire technical risk and deploy operational capability.”

Is space-based solar such a good idea?

Space-based solar power was first proposed by Czechoslovakian-born American scientist and aerospace engineer Peter Glaser. In 1968, Glaser proposed placing large solar collecting arrays in space and beaming the energy down to Earth via microwave beams.

Solar arrays could be placed in a geostationary orbit, where they would constantly be facing the sun. This means the concept has the potential to harvest renewable energy 24/7. However, a great deal of infrastructure on the ground and in space would need to be validated to make this possible.

Star Catcher has found a workaround of sorts, aiming to provide energy in space for space applications. This means no ground infrastructure is required. Energy could also be beamed straight down to solar panels on the ground, allowing them to harvest sunlight at nighttime.

Despite the potential benefits, some would argue against sending yet another constellation to low Earth orbit. In a 2022 interview with Interesting Engineering, University of Regina astronomer Samantha Lawler warned that the increasing rate of satellite launches was setting us on a path toward Kessler Syndrome—a cascading effect of destruction similar to that portrayed in the movie ‘Gravity’. As space debris would be flying at several kilometers per second, a clean-up operation would be akin to “collecting bullets,” Lawler said at the time.

With Starlink, space-based solar constellations, and now AI data centers planned for space, we may be pushing ourselves even closer to the edge.