MOSCOW -- Russia's Mir space station is set to attempt one of its most dramatic experiments, unfolding a giant mirror to reflect sunlight to dark corners of the Earth.
Thursday's Znamya 2.5 test is designed to see whether huge orbiting mirrors could light up the dark winters of the Russian north, boost agriculture by lengthening the day, or illuminate construction sites and disaster areas, officials said.
Skeptics call it a hare-brained scheme doomed to fail.
"On Earth we are now only using our internal resources: coal, oil, water through hydro-power stations ... atomic energy," said Yevgeny Ryabko, the experiment's chief designer. "Reflecting solar energy -- which the Earth now only uses for a tiny fraction of its power -- will help us in all ways."
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