Aerospace firm Lockheed Martin has joined forces with Northumbria University to research space-based solar power.
The US-based contractor has invested £150,000 into the partnership that aims to "harvest" the sun's energy and beam electricity wirelessly down to Earth. The process will use specialised solar panels that will collect and convert laser power into power for future space and lunar vehicles.
Lockheed says the technology could provide a new source of zero carbon power for homes and businesses, and would be operational at all times of the day, whatever the weather. The work builds on the firm's prior experimentation with laser-based systems and is an extension of an existing partnership with Northumbria University.
