A Canadian startup is about to prove something that sounds like science fiction: beaming solar power across the lunar void to keep a spacecraft alive through two-week nights that plunge to minus 410 degrees Fahrenheit.
Volta Space Technologies designed a receiver called LightPort that will ride aboard Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost lander when it touches down near the moon's south pole by the end of 2026. If the test works, it validates the first piece of what could become a permanent power infrastructure for human bases on the moon—something NASA is betting on to make a lasting lunar presence actually feasible.
How Wireless Power on the Moon Works
The concept is elegant: solar-harvesting satellites orbit the moon, collect sunlight (which never stops up there), and transmit it via laser to receivers on the lunar surface. Volta calls the full system LightGrid. The company has already tested it on Earth, successfully beaming power across 850 meters in field conditions. The real test, though, is whether it survives the moon's harsh environment and actually delivers energy when it matters most.
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Start Your News DetoxLunar nights last about 14 Earth days. During that stretch, temperatures don't just drop—they plummet. Solar panels go dormant. Batteries drain. Any spacecraft or base needs a reliable alternative power source, and that's where beamed solar power becomes crucial. Unlike Earth, where atmosphere and weather complicate wireless power transmission, the moon's vacuum is actually ideal for laser-based energy delivery.
Firefly Aerospace, which became the first commercial company to successfully land and operate a spacecraft on the moon, is handling the delivery. Volta's LightPort will sit on top of Blue Ghost's upper deck, positioned to receive signals from orbiting satellites. It's a straightforward test: Can the receiver capture and convert the transmitted power into usable energy in a real lunar environment.
Why This Matters for Lunar Bases
NASA isn't alone in pursuing this. Other companies like Astrobotic are developing competing systems—LunaGrid uses cables to connect solar stations instead of wireless transmission. But the principle is the same: sustainable power infrastructure is the foundation for anything permanent on the moon. Without it, every mission is a sprint against battery life. With it, you can build.
Justin Zipkin, Volta's CEO, framed the 2026 test as a stepping stone. "This collaboration allows us to prove our LightPort receiver in a real lunar environment and move one step closer to delivering a fully integrated power grid for the Moon," he said. That's not hype—it's a clear statement of what's at stake. The test either works or it doesn't. If it does, the next phase is scaling up: multiple receivers, multiple satellites, an actual network.
The timeline is tight but realistic. 2026 is less than two years away. If Blue Ghost lands on schedule and the LightPort performs, we'll have real data on whether wireless power can sustain human activity on the moon. That data changes everything about what comes next.
