Solar/Electric plane

geetarboy

geetarboy

100 W
Joined
Nov 19, 2009
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Kansas City - USA
The electric/alternative power revolution is gaining momentum!http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100707/ts_afp/switzerlandtechnologyaerospaceenergyenvironment_20100707125149
 
24 hour non-stop flight!
http://www.solarimpulse.com/nightFlights/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsReZUjLbkg
[youtube]DsReZUjLbkg[/youtube]

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Solar plane takes off for 1st international flight
– Fri May 13, 5:21 am ET

GENEVA – A team of Swiss adventurers took their solar-powered plane on its first international flight Friday, a 370-mile (600-kilometer) leap from a small airfield in Switzerland to Brussels airport in Belgium.
The Solar Impulse HB-SIA single-seater prototype took off from Payerne airfield in Switzerland at 8:40 a.m. (0640 GMT) after a three-hour delay due to strong winds. It is expected to reach Brussels by nightfall.
The plane with the wingspan of a Boeing 777 made its 2009 maiden flight in Switzerland and further tests have all taken place there. Last year it completed a 26-hour non-stop flight that proved the plane can stay aloft at night from the solar energy its 12,000 solar cells soaked up during the day.
The team, led by pilot Andre Borschberg and adventurer Bertrand Piccard, said Friday's flight across France, Luxembourg and Belgium poses a fresh challenge as it requires navigation across international air traffic networks.
They hope to fly an improved version of the plane around the world in 2012.
The flight can be followed on the team's website, where visitors can track the plane's progress live on a map and see key parameters such as altitude, ground speed, battery levels and how much energy its solar cells are generating.
http://www.solarimpulse.com/
 

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Solar plane completes its maiden intercontinental trip

Reuters said:
SALE, Morocco — A solar energy plane landed in Morocco on Tuesday, completing the world's first intercontinental flight powered by the sun to show the potential for pollution-free air travel.

The Solar Impulse took off from Madrid at 0322 GMT Tuesday (11:22 p.m. ET Monday) and landed at Rabat's international airport after a 19-hour flight.

<snip>
Click to expand...

Congrats to the Team! KF 8)
 
Solar-powered plane takes off for flight across U.S.

r


Reuters said:
A solar-powered airplane that developers hope to eventually pilot around the world took off early on Friday from San Francisco Bay on the first leg of an attempt to fly across the United States with no fuel but the sun's energy.

The plane, dubbed the Solar Impulse, departed shortly after 6 a.m. local time from Moffett Field, a joint civil-military airport near the south end of San Francisco, heading first to Phoenix on a slow-speed flight expected to take 15 to 20 hours.

The spindly looking plane barely hummed as it took flight in the still northern California morning as the sun was just beginning to peek out over the Santa Cruz Mountains to the east.

After additional stops in Dallas, St. Louis and Washington, D.C., with pauses at each destination to wait for favorable weather, the flight team hopes to conclude the plane's cross-country voyage in about two months at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

Swiss pilots and co-founders of the project, Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, will take turns flying the plane, built with a single-seat cockpit, with Piccard at the controls for the first flight to Arizona. He is tentatively scheduled to land in Phoenix at 1 a.m. local time on Saturday.

The project began in 2003 with a 10-year budget of 90 million euros ($112 million) and has involved engineers from Swiss escalator maker Schindler and research aid from Belgian chemicals group Solvay - backers who want to test new materials and technologies while also gaining brand recognition.

Project organizers say the journey is also intended to boost worldwide support for the adoption of clean-energy technologies.

"I hope people understand the potential of this technology and use it on the ground," Borschberg, who flew for the Swiss Air Force for more than 20 years, told reporters as Piccard suited up for the flight nearby. "If we don't try to fly today using renewable energy, we never will."

With the wingspan of a jumbo jet and the weight of a small car, the Solar Impulse is a test model for a more advanced aircraft the team plans to build to circumnavigate the globe in 2015.

The plane made its first intercontinental flight, from Spain to Morocco, last June.

SOLAR CELLS BUILT INTO WINGS

The aircraft runs on about the same power as a motor scooter, propelled by energy collected from 12,000 solar cells built into the wings that simultaneously recharge batteries with a storage capacity equivalent to a Tesla electric car.

In that way, the Solar Impulse can fly after dark on solar energy generated during daylight hours, and will become the first solar-powered aircraft capable of operating day and night without fuel to attempt a U.S. coast-to-coast flight.

But the plane, which from a distance resembles a giant floating insect in the sky, is unlikely to set any speed or altitude records. It can climb gradually to 28,000 feet and flies at an average pace of just 43 miles per hour (69 km per hour).

The current plane was designed for flights of up to 24 hours at a time, but the next model will have to allow for up to five days and five nights of flying by one pilot - a feat not yet accomplished.

Meditation and hypnosis were part of the training for the pilots as they prepared to fly on very little sleep.

Asked about the downside of solar-powered flight at a news conference in March to unveil the current plane, Piccard acknowledged there was a price paid for the tiny carrying capacity and massive wings.

"In that sense, it is not the easiest way to fly," he said. "But it is the most fabulous way to fly, because the more you fly, the more energy you have on board."

He added: "We want to inspire as many people as possible to have that same spirit: to dare, to innovate, to invent."

The plane's four large batteries, attached to the bottom of the wings along with the plane's tiny motors, account for a quarter of its overall heft.

The aircraft's lightweight carbon fiber design and wingspan allow it to conserve energy, but also make the plane vulnerable to being tipped over.

A ground team of weather specialists, air traffic controllers and engineers track the plane's speed and battery levels and help the pilot steer clear of turbulence. Solar Impulse cannot fly in strong wind, fog, rain or clouds. Its machinery is not even designed to withstand moisture.
Click to expand...

~KF
 
I remembered seeing the launch of this plane on the news a few months back and wondered if it ever arrived on the east coast. All is well. Here is an update.
http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/fuel-free-solar-impulse-airplane-finishing-its-american-odyssey-6C10551691
 
It arrived safely in New York last night, completing the mission. However, the final leg was not without drama.
http://www.nbcnews.com/science/solar-impulse-plane-ends-american-odyssey-fears-tears-cheers-6C10551691
 
Vid of Solar Impulse II flight yesterday:
http://www.livescience.com/46038-solar-impulse-2-maiden-voyage.html?cmpid=557694

(Note, plane successfully followed on ground by not one, but TWO ebikers - and in air by one noisy Stinkmachine/helicopter.)
 
... in the United Arab Emirates on Monday ahead of a planned round-the-world tour.
http://news.yahoo.com/solar-plane-passes-test-ahead-planned-world-tour-080315025.html
Solar_Impulse2.jpg

Honey? Nice sunny day. Mind flying to the store to pick up more eggs?
 
NPR (National Public Radio) airs "Heart of Space" on Sunday evenings, a new ageish music program. I fell asleep to that :wink: I guess it's like an adult lullaby. Well, it transitioned to BBC world radio later into the early morning and woke me up. There hot story was the Solar Impulse taking off from Abu Dhabi, and they repeated it more than several times with an interview with the Pilot & Co-designer and subsequent light discussion of the higher efficiency of modern photovoltaic technology & rechargeable batteries.

They aren't supported by the big aerospace & airplane industry, maybe because solar doesn't suit heavy commercial aircraft. But it does show promise for the lighter one-manned type planes. I'm guessing gliders outfitted with panels on the wing and a battery pack hooked up to an electric propelled motor to extend flight times when you run out of thermal. Maybe there's enough capacity and lightweight battery to a glider enough to make a glider takeoff :| But my hunch says you still need to hitch a ride initially unless you sacrifice for more wingspan.
 
Hehe... "Hit" Broadway. Might expect big crowds if/when arriving in Hawaii... Phoenix... all stops on trip. Lady A.E. got BIG crowd on reaching Ireland:
911016-amelia-earhart.jpg
 
Solar Impulse 2 Ready for Historic Flight Across Pacific
Solar Impulse 2 will be taking off this week from China and flying onward to Hawaii, on the seventh leg of its round-the-world journey. The solar-powered aircraft will take around 120 hours (approximately 5 days) to make the journey. This epic, and critical, leg of the journey will be manned by only one pilot. Yikes..
.. . The solar cells charge 633 kilograms of lithium batteries, which allows night-time flying.
Click to expand...
 
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