The most popular power source for spacecraft is Solar panels, dating back to the oldest satellite still in orbit, Vanguard-1. Since then solar panels have seen huge gains in performance and have allowed spacecraft to go deeper into the solar system than ever before without resorting to expensive nuclear power sources. Solar cells are semiconductor devices which exploit quantum mechanics to drive electrons around a circuit and generate power. They actually date back over a century, but modern technology makes them 30 times more powerful than the first panels ever used. Follow me on Twitter for more updates: https://twitter.com/DJSnM I have a discord server where I regularly turn up: https://discord.gg/zStmKbM If you really like what I do you can support me directly through Patreon https://www.patreon.com/scottmanley