Solar Impulse 2 geared up to resume its record-setting round-the-world journey.
Solar Impulse 2, an aircraft that is attempting to make the first round-the-world solar-powered flight, is set to resume its journey later this month.
Solar Impulse 2 left Abu Dhabi on March 9, last year and has flown to Muscat, Ahmedabad, Varanasi, Mandalay, Chongqing, Nanjing, Nagoya and Hawaii, where it has been grounded since July.
The plane’s batteries became overheated after a quick ascent on the first day during the flight from Nagoya to Hawaii.
More than 17,000 solar cells on the plane’s wing power lithium-ion batteries in four electric motors. The airframe uses carbon fiber, which is three times lighter than paper, to keep the plane as light as possible.
The plane’s batteries had to be replaced so the aircraft could resume its record-setting flight.
To make it as light as possible, the plane has no room for baggage.
Its cabin contains six oxygen bottles for high-altitude flight. An ergonomic seat allows the pilot to take naps, with a wrist-mounted buzzer to alert him in an emergency.
There is a toilet in the seat and a liferaft and parachute in the seat back.
The plane takes off at night at 35 kmph. It ascends to 8,500 meters during the day at a top speed of 140 kmph, as it stores solar energy. At night, the plane descends to 1,500 meters and slows down to conserve power.
The cabin is not pressurized, so the pilot has to wear thick clothes to keep warm and an oxygen mask at high altitudes.
Solar Impulse 2 is ready to depart in late April, depending on the weather. From Hawaii, it will travel to North America and southern Europe before returning to Abu Dhabi this summer.
The purpose of the flight is to promote cleaner and more environmentally friendly technologies.
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