Solar Impulse

SunPower is official supplier to Solar Impulse Project

SunPower Corp has announced that the company is providing solar cells to the Solar Impulse project.

First international flight for solar powered plane

In the framework of its European solar flight campaign, Solar Impulse, under the patronage of the European Commission, has selected Brussels as its first international destination.

Schindler joins Solar Impulse as a main partner

Schindler, a global elevator and escalator provider, has decided to support Solar Impulse, the zero fuel airplane aiming to fly around the world propelled only by solar energy. Schindler will closely follow and support cutting edge technology in various disciplines.

Third generation batteries are needed

Most of today's pure electric vehicles and those announced for the next few years offer only 100 miles range. Ask a roomful of people if they would buy a car with that range and usually no hands go up.

Solar power for electric vehicles

Most of the companies developing photovoltaics have been obsessed with reaching grid parity meaning competitiveness with conventional grid electricity generation which is often highly subsidised. More recently, it has been realised that the market for disposable photovoltaics on consumer goods is at least as large and even the potential on electric vehicles by land, water and air, could be an enticing billion square meters a year, comparable to that for buildings.

Sakti3 Third generation batteries backed

Earlier this year, the University of Michigan traction battery spinoff Sakti3, inc. announced $7 million in second round of venture funding led by capital firm Beringea, in addition to Khosla. Now G.M. Ventures has invested $3.2 Million in the company. Vloet/University of Michigan Professor Ann Marie Sastry of the University of Michigan is chief executive of Sakti3.

New electric planes take off

It seems back to front but the unmanned pure electric aircraft have often been huge, including the AeroVironment and Aurora Flight Sciences vehicles that cruise to upper atmosphere on solar energy carrying out surveillance.

The future of electric aircraft

It can only fly for 15 minutes but it is a breakthrough all the same. Improved batteries have finally made a manned electric helicopter a reality.

First night flight ever by a solar plane

For more than 26 hours, André Borschberg expertly piloted the aircraft with its 64 meter wingspan. The plane was up in the air for the whole day, then through the entire night, flying solely on solar energy.

First night flight by a solar plane

The Solar Impulse HB-SIA, with André Borschberg at its controls, has successfully completed the first night flight by a solar plane landing at 09:00 on the 8th July.

Solar Impulse completes first flight

The Solar Impulse HB-SIA solar-powered aeroplane has successfully completed its first flight taking off from Payerne, Switzerland, according to reports. With a 63 metre wingspan covered with solar cells, the solar powered plane completed its maiden voyage successfully.

Around the world in a solar plane

The Solar Impulse is a revolutionary concept that will push back the limits of our knowledge in the field of materials, energy management and the man-machine interface. It is an aircraft with an inordinate wingspan for its weight and of an aerodynamic quality that to this day has not been equaled, capable of tremendous resistance, despite its light weight.

The glamorous world of energy harvesting

Energy harvesting is the use of ambient energy to create electricity for small or mobile equipment and it started with such things as the bicycle dynamo and the piezoelectric gas lighter.

Aircraft propelled by solar energy to complete day-night-day cycle

Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg have unveiled, at Dübendorf airfield close to Zurich, the Solar Impulse HB-SIA, the first aircraft designed to fly both day and night without fossil fuel or pollution.