On July 24, the famous solar-powered manned aircraft Solar Impulse 2 sailed from Cairo to Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, and embarked on its last voyage of global navigation.
The global voyage has a total of 17 segments, which lasted 16 months and reached 350,000 kilometers. The last stop is expected to take 48 hours. Previously, the last stop had been postponed for a week because the wind was too strong and Bertrand Piccard was in a state of physical discomfort.
During the entire “Sunshine Power 2†round-the-world trip, due to the narrow space in the cabin, the pilot can only put the seat down and take a rest, and there will be instruments to monitor the status of the aircraft. If there is any abnormality, the pilot will be quickly awakened. Moreover, the "Sunshine Power 2" cabin is not sealed and pressurized, and only relying on material insulation, the temperature of the cabin will definitely drop to a considerable extent in an environment of minus 8 degrees altitude and 40 degrees Celsius, which is huge for the pilot. The challenge. So pilot Picard told reporters before taking off at Cairo International Airport: "This is not a business plan, but an adventure." And said that this plan is for energy, in order to make the world better.
Piccard and Swiss entrepreneur Andre Borschberg took turns driving the Sun Power 2 to achieve a global world flight of 35,000 kilometers.
Co-founders Bertrand Picard and Andre Polschberger
"Sunshine Power 2" is the second generation of Solar Impulse, the Swiss aircraft manufacturer. The aircraft can carry two individuals, pilots can drive in rotation, weighing only one car (1-2 tons), compared to the weight of a typical passenger aircraft of 100-200 tons, Solar Impulse 2 is undoubtedly very lightweight. The wingspan is up to 72 meters long, which is 12 meters longer than the representative Boeing 747 in the aircraft we know well. Longer wingspan can install more solar panels.
In 2014, “Sunshine Power 2†made its first flight. Immediately after March 2015, “Sunshine Power 2†started its global travel. It departs from Abu Dhabi and stops including China Chongqing and Nanjing. Within the 12 cities, only rely on solar energy to provide power throughout. Picard said that in the future, it will achieve a 50-person manned flight plan.
Via Geekwire