Secrets of the Solar-Powered Plane That Might Make History
The Solar Impulse 2 hopes to fly its way into the record books (Photo: AP)
Two Swiss pilots are getting ready for a history-making trip around the world.
Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg are planning the first solar-powered flight around the world aboard their plane, Solar Impulse 2. They announced the plane will take off in late February or early March from Abu Dhabi for a five-month journey that will take them to India, Myanmar, China, the Phoenix and New York, and other locations before they land in Abu Dhabi.
Related: A Future Road Trip Might be in a Solar-Powered Car
We’re really excited about their journey and have some burning questions.
How long is the trip?
Overall, with stops, the trip will take five months. That breaks down to about 25 days of total flight time.
The plane is called Solar Impulse 2. What happened so Solar Impulse 1?
It was retired after breaking a couple of solar aviation records. In 2010, it became the first solar-powered plane to fly through the night without fuel. In 2012, it was used for the first fully solar-powered intercontinental flight in a successful trip from Switzerland to Morocco. And in 2013, it completed a two-month coast-to-coast American flight from San Francisco to New York.
The original Solar Impulse broke lots of records in its day. (Photo: Getty Images)
How is Solar Impulse 2 different
It’s bigger, wider, and heavier. Solar Impulse 2 is made of carbon fiber and is still incredibly light for a plane — about 5,000 pounds, lighter than your average SUV. It has a 236-foot wingspan, which is slightly larger than a Boeing 747-8.
Is it really “the only airplane of perpetual endurance?”
Yes, it is. The people at Solar Impulse claim their plane can fly continuously for five days straight, without fuel, strictly on solar power.
Won’t a solar-powered plane be in trouble at night or on a cloudy day?
Nope. Built into the plane’s wings are 17,000 solar cells, which collect solar energy, up to 340 kilowatt-hours a day, and feed it to the plane’s four 17.5-horsepower electric motors. The process also charges 633 kg of lithium polymer batteries, on which the plane runs when there is no sun.
WATCH: First Global Solar Plane Trip
How fast can a solar powered plane go, anyway?
Capable of speeds between 22 and 87 miles per hour, Solar Impulse 2 is nowhere near as fast as a commercial jetliner. It would take a commercial jet a few days to make the five-month worldwide journey planned for Solar Impulse 2.
Who are the pilots?
These guys have flying and exploration in their blood. Bertrand Piccard, a psychiatrist, explorer, and aeronaut, made the first nonstop `round-the-world balloon flight. André Borschberg is an engineer and graduate in management science, a fighter pilot, and a professional airplane and helicopter pilot.
Fun fact: A relative of Bertran Piccard’s (on left, standing next to his copilot André Borschberg), balloonist Jean Piccard, reportedly is the namesake of the “Star Trek: The Next Generation” character Jean-Luc Picard.
How will they fly?
Each man will take turns at the controls inside the unpressurized 3.8-cubic-meter cockpit. The seat reclines to double as a bed, so the pilot can rest.
Why are they doing this?
They aren’t trying to usher in a new age of solar-powered airlines; they just want to be champions for clean energy. On their website, they say their goal is to “demonstrate that the actual alternative energy sources and new technologies can achieve what some consider impossible.”
Let Yahoo Travel inspire you every day. Hang out with us on Facebook,Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. And Check out Yahoo Travel’s original video series A Broad Abroad, starring editor-in-chief Paula Froelich. This week Paula learned how to make Mexican pizza from an expert.
