India-US space-based solar power programme urged (crosspost)

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Crosspost from LBN:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4539305

India-US space-based solar power programme urged

Source: Yahoo News

India and the US should explore the feasibility of a space-based solar power (SBSP) programme with the ultimate aim of putting in place a commercially viable system by 2025, a report by a defence ministry funded think tank says.

There is, however, a catch. India would first have to accede to the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) before the system is put in place, says the report that has been prepared by Peter Garretson, a US Air Force lieutenant colonel on a sabbatical as an international fellow at the New Delhi-based Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA).

Noting that SBSP can be 'the next major step in the Indo-US strategic partnership', the 174-page report says the launch of such a potentially revolutionary programme can begin with a joint statement by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and US President Barak Obama during the latter's visit to New Delhi in November.

Besides helping to 'solve the linked problems of energy security, development and climate change', the SBSP will provide an opportunity for India to use its successful space programme while shaping a future peaceful space regime, Garretson said.

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Read more: http://in.news.yahoo.com/43/20100913/982/tsc-india-us-space-based-solar-power-pro_1.html