Impulse to Chase the Sun

In a world depending on fossil energies, the Solar Impulse project aims to do something almost unthinkable - fly around the world, day and night, using only solar power. Its maiden voyage of the HB-SIA airplane occurred on Wednesday, April 7, 2010, from its home base in Switzerland.

"Our future depends on our ability to convert rapidly to the use of renewable energies. Solar Impulse is intended to demonstrate what can be done already today by using these energies and applying new technologies that can save natural resources”, says Bertrand Piccard, President and co-founder of the project.

Pilot Markus Scherdel flew the craft to an altitude of about 1,200 meters (3,937 feet), about seven-tenths of a mile in altitude, with a total flight time of approximately one hour, 27 minutes. During the flight, Scherdel put the craft through its paces, checking its handling through a series of turns and manoeuvres. The HB-SIA uses only the Sun for its power, collecting sunlight through its 12,000 solar panels on its wing, which is as wide as a Boeing 747 but only about 1.7 tons in weight, whereas the fully loaded weight (with fuel) of a Boeing 747 is about 800,000 pounds, or 400 tons. The plane stores energy in batteries for use at night.

Wednesday's flight was the first to see how the plane would fare at a high altitude over a longer duration. It was also considered the riskiest phase of the project by Solar Impulse CEO and co-founder Andre Borschberg as the 87-minute journey represented the culmination of seven years of research and testing." Over upcoming flights, the distance and duration of each flight will be extended. The first flight that will be held both during the day and the night is scheduled to occur in the summer of 2010. At that time, the plane will remain in the air for about 36 hours. Eventually, test flights will occur to test the plane’s ability to stay in the air for around the world ventures of four to six days.

"We still have a long way to go until the night flights and an even longer way before flying round the world,” says Piccard. “ …but today, thanks to the extraordinary work of an entire team, an essential step towards achieving our vision has been taken.” (CNET)

The project could herald a breakthrough in aviation, ushering in a new era of pollution free flight. Aircraft emissions are a significant contributor to climate change, solely responsible for some 3% of those emissions - and the continuing explosion in air traffic volumes, as more people gain access to flight, means this will only grow.

To find out more about Solar Impulse, visit the project website.

Published: Monday, 12th April 2010 by Andrew Atkinson

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