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Solar Impulse begins 24-hour test flight, lets you watch the whole thing live
Boy, these Franco-Swiss research teams sure do like to exhibit their work to the world. After the Large Hadron Collider crew did a live webcast of their record-breaking 7 TeV proton collisions, here's Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse gang showing off their latest feat via a live video stream. Taking off shortly before 7AM Central European Time today, the HB-SIA craft is currently cruising above the idyllic plains of Switzerland, with the plan being for it to start gently descending through the night and plopping itself back down on terra firma early in the morning. Hit the source link to track its laps in real time, replete with sporadic commentary from the monitoring crew. It's riveting stuff.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: street-legal Tron lightcycles, electronic eyeglasses, and the American Solar Challenge
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us. This week Inhabitat saw solar-powered vehicles blaze trails around the globe as the University of Michigan's sleek pod car crossed the finish line to win the American Solar Challenge. We also watched the Solar Impulse gear up for its first eagerly anticipated night flight -- a pivotal undertaking as the sun-powered plane prepares to circle the earth. In other clean transportation news, and we were stunned to see a set of street-legal electric Tron lightcycles pop up on eBay. The field of renewable energy also heated up this week as researchers revealed an innovative tri-layered solar panel that's capable of catching the full spectrum of the sun's rays. Wind power made waves as well as Principle Power unveiled a new ultra-sturdy ocean platform that's able to support the world's tallest wind turbines. Finally, we saw the light this week as Illumitex unveiled the world's first square LED bulb, which they claim is cheaper, more efficient and more practical than typical round bulbs. We also peered at an innovative new type of electronic eyeglasses that can change your prescription with the push of a button. And for all you shutterbugs looking to share your vision with the world, you won't want to miss this handy solar camera strap that ensures you'll never miss a shot.
Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse completes first full test flight, nears another frontier (video)
We've tracked this solar-powered tub from its announcement last year, through its first runway tests, past the little hop that counted as its first flight, and now we've arrived at the HB-SIA's first legitimate test flight. The Solar Impulse, brainchild of one Bertrand Piccard, took the upward plunge into the skies yesterday, successfully rising to 5,500 feet and a speed of 30 knots before gliding down gently and calling the whole thing an unqualified success. You can find video of the event after the break. A nighttime test flight is planned for later this year, after which a bulkier production model will be cobbled together with the intent of reaching the final goal of circumnavigating the globe by 2012.
Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse takes flight
They said it couldn't be done. They laughed and questioned what would happen when the sun sets, but the man whose passport reads Piccard, Bertrand, and whose bold will and bald helm match a similarly named Capitaine, has now overseen the first solar-powered flight on the Solar Impulse HB-SIA. Okay, so it was 1,150 feet flown at a meter above ground level, but that's just classic Swiss caution for you, no reason not to celebrate the fact that there's now a flying tub powered purely by solar energy and promising a future of aircraft operating indefinitely -- so long as the sun doesn't forget to rise every morning. This comes mere days after the first runway tests were carried out, leading us to believe that this is one mission with a glorious chance of success.
Captain Piccard's Solar Impulse starts runway testing
Good news, kids -- the solar-powered jet with globetrotting ambitions has started sneaking out of the hangar and onto the runway for some mild exercise in the form of landing gear and taxi testing. Captained by Bertrand Piccard -- a real person -- the Solar Impulse project is still on track for a 2012 globe circumnavigation attempt powered only by the sun's rays from above and the well-wishes from below. The humongous bird is described as having "the wingspan of an Airbus and the weight of a car," and its recent outdoorsy jaunts have done nothing to dampen spirits, making that roadmap for its first flight early next year seem entirely viable. We've got no less than three videos for you after the break, but we won't mind if you only watch one.
Captain Piccard unveils Solar Impulse HB-SIA solar-powered plane
You might have seen solar-powered planes before, but few of them come with as much world-changing ambition as the Solar Impulse. Launched in 2003, the project aims to demonstrate the viability of renewable energy sources by being the first to perform a manned flight around the globe using only solar power. The technology is nothing to scoff at, as the 200-foot wingspan features 12,000 photovoltaic solar cells bringing power to four electric motors. Captain Bertrand Piccard, one of the key men behind this project, is best known as one half of the first team to circumnavigate the world in a balloon in 1999. He hopes, together with partner André Borschberg, to repeat that achievement in Solar Impulse's next iteration, the HB-SIB, in 2012. Make it so, guys.[Via Gizmag]