Science News: There really is a Captain Piccard!
The BBC this week reported a solar-powered aircraft the size of a jumbo jet, but weighing about as much as a family sedan, made a 1,500 mile trip from Madrid, Spain to Morocco in just 19 hours. The pilot’s name is Captain Picard, Bertrand Piccard that is. Believe it or not, the plane uses 12,000 solar cells that turn four electrical motors.
The reason the Solar Impulse project is important is that it proves that the sun’s energy really is strong enough to keep the a plane the size of a jumbo jet in the air for more than a 24 hours straight. The onboard batteries were also strong enough to keep the airplane flying through the night too.
Although the engineering is impressive, the BBC stated this trip was only a dress rehearsal for a much longer trip. Believe it or not, they are building a new aircraft and are planning a trip around the world, scheduled for the year 2014.
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