Critical Test In Around The World Attempt
ANN Realtime Update 1330 EDT 07.01.10
Solar Impulse Flight Postponed. The team hoping
to fly around the clock on solar and battery power alone has had to
cancel their scheduled Thursday attempt due to a "technical
problem."
Solar Impulse co-founder Bertrand Piccard told the international
news service AFP that "a failure occurred in a critical place in
the plane," and a decision was made to postpone the 24 hour attempt
until another day. Adding to the disappointment was the
near-perfect weather conditions for the test flight.
Piccard said it was the first real setback in the seven years of
the program. He said he did not know when the team would be able to
schedule another attempt, because the aircraft still depends on
severe clear and stable weather conditions ... as well as summer's
long days and short nights. The best Piccard would say was they
would shoot for the end of July or early August.
Original Story: When you're planning to fly
around the world in an airplane powered by nothing more than solar
panels, the question that comes immediately to mind is "what
happens at night?" The Solar Impulse will try to answer that
question, as it departs early Thursday from an airport in
Switzerland for a flight that is planned to last 24 hours.
Solar Impulse File Photo
Bertrand Piccard, one of the founders of the Solar
Impulse project and the first person to circumnavigate the planet
in a balloon, calls the move away from fossil fuels the "great
adventure of the 21st century." The Solar Impulse, which weighs no
more than a normal car but sports the wingspan of an Airbus A340,
has completed 10 test flights so far. But Thursday's will be the
first to attempt to fly at night.
The international news service AFP reports that the Solar
Impulse team says the most critical time in the flight will come
around dawn, when the energy stored in onboard batteries is running
low and they are hoping for a boost from the rising sun to keep the
airplane aloft.
Solar Impulse File Photo
The current aircraft is a proof-of-concept model. Piccard and
co-founder Andre Borschberg, who will be piloting the 24 hour
flight, say they will soon begin building a larger version designed
for the circumnavigation attempt, planned for 2013 or 2014.
Meanwhile, Piccard says that if the airplane can fly day and night
with no fuel, it will prove that the same technology can be used
for more ground-bound applications such as air conditioning,
heating, and powering household appliances.