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DARPA Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay (POWER) Program

Sector: Aerospace & Defense • Location: New Mexico, United States

Source: Live Science

Project
Under Construction

The U.S. military's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) conducted a test as part of its POWER program, successfully beaming a laser carrying more than 800 watts of power across a distance of 5.3 miles (8.6 kilometers). This experiment marks a significant advancement in wireless power transmission, with applications for military operations and space-based solar power. The test was con

Status
Under Construction
Sector
Aerospace & Defense, Solar, Broadband, Power Generation (CCGT), Telecommunications, Automotive, Government
Location
New Mexico, United States of America
Updated
22 Jul 2026
Source
Live Science

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The project “DARPA Persistent Optical Wireless Energy Relay (POWER) Program” is an infrastructure initiative in the Aerospace & Defense sector, located in New Mexico, United States. Taiyo aggregates data on it from Live Science.

Participants

Sponsoring Agency

Status

Original status

under construction

Taiyo status

Under Construction

Taiyo last update

2026-07-22

Contact

Not available for this record.

Description

Description

The U.S. military's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) conducted a test as part of its POWER program, successfully beaming a laser carrying more than 800 watts of power across a distance of 5.3 miles (8.6 kilometers). This experiment marks a significant advancement in wireless power transmission, with applications for military operations and space-based solar power. The test was conducted at the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, where the power was beamed over the 5.3-mile distance in a 30-second pulse, with approximately 20% efficiency. The system could potentially be used to power unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and will be further tested across multiple connected relays and vertical transmission.

Original sector

Energy

Location

Country

United States of America (USA)

State

New Mexico

Source

Source

Live Science

URL

More Details

Record type

Project

Sector

Aerospace & Defense, Solar, Broadband, Power Generation (CCGT), Telecommunications, Automotive, Government

Article published date

2025-06-22

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