Hosted by Steve Nerlich.

Cheap Astronomy asks what's the point and then gets some sunshine.

Dear Cheap Astronomy – Did the Universe start from a single point?

This hypothetical concept is commonly stated in pop science blogs and we are guilty of doing the same here at Cheap Astronomy. However, it's not necessarily correct. As with most things relating to the Universe, all we can really talk about is the observable Universe. All evidence available does suggest that it emerged from a point source 13.8 billion years ago, but if the actual Universe is bigger than the observable Universe – and it very likely is – then it's not clear that the whole Universe emerged from that point source.

Dear Cheap Astronomy – Is space-based solar power the solution to all our problems?

Well, not all our problems and while SBSP is technically feasible, it may not be economically viable. The general idea of SBSP is that you have a solar collecting facility in Earth orbit, which then transmits the energy collected as microwaves down to the Earth's surface. Microwaves are preferred since they pass through the Earth's atmosphere relatively well and should not harm aircraft, ground infrastructure or people if they happen to get in the way. It might seem a bit daft to intercept light that already passes through the Earth's atmosphere, convert it into a lower energy form of light and then pass that through the atmosphere.

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