Solar Planes เครื่องบินพลังงานแสงอาทิตย์

Solar Planes เครื่องบินพลังงานแสงอาทิตย์

SOURCE  :   http://www.boston.com

Solar Impulse flight: Across the US, powered by the sun

The experimental airplane Solar Impulse completed its first flight across the United States this week. The Swiss-made plane, powered only by the sun, is the first to make the trip both day and night without using conventional fuel. It started the journey on May 3 in California and ended on July 6 in New York. Pilots and creators Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg took turns manning the single-seat flyer, which is powered by about 12,000 silicon solar cells and has a wingspan of a jumbo jet. The next step is a trip around the world in 2015.- Leanne Burden Seidel (24 photos total)

Workers load a wing of the Swiss sun-powered aircraft Solar Impulse into a Cargolux Boeing 747 cargo aircraft on February 20 at Payerne airport in Geneva. The Boeing will carry the Solar Impulse HB-SIA prototype aircraft to San Francisco for a series of flights across the US from the West to East Coast. (Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images)

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Crew members return the Solar Impulse to its hangar following a test flight at Moffett Field in Mountain View, Calif., April 19. The aircraft, made of carbon fiber sheets and powered by solar cells, will attempt to fly once around the world powered solely by solar energy. (Robert Galbraith/Reuters) #

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A bird flies along with the Solar Impulse as it approaches the runway for a landing following a test flight at Moffett Field in Mountain View, Calif., April 19. (Robert Galbraith/Reuters) #