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Got a chance to see the Solar Impulse all-electric plane on Friday while it made a stopover in St. Louis. The plane took 21 hours to fly from Dallas to St. Louis, with about a quarter of the time in the dark, depending entirely on the batteries. The pilot had to circle over mid-Missouri for over seven hours, waiting until all the jet traffic was done at Lambert. (I assume because of the turbulence and the fact that landing speed is about 30 mph.) The top surface of the wing and horizontal stabilizer are covered with solar cells, feeding batteries in each of the four engine pods. Engines are brushless DC motors geared down 10:1 to a fixed-pitch prop.
The cockpit isn't pressurized or heated. One of the crew told me that the temp can get very hot in the morning at low altitudes and -40 in the afternoon at about 24000 feet. Max speed is around 50 mph, which means that sometimes with a headwind you're actually flying backwards.
All in all, a pretty cool afternoon.
Cockpit with copilot.
Main gear, under the fuselage. The vertical stabilizer has a small wheel under it, and two outriggers on the wings, sort of like a U2. The crew said you have to land perfectly straight and level, since the vertical stab is only about a foot off the ground.
My attempt at a panorama showing the wingspan.
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The cockpit isn't pressurized or heated. One of the crew told me that the temp can get very hot in the morning at low altitudes and -40 in the afternoon at about 24000 feet. Max speed is around 50 mph, which means that sometimes with a headwind you're actually flying backwards.
All in all, a pretty cool afternoon.
Cockpit with copilot.
Main gear, under the fuselage. The vertical stabilizer has a small wheel under it, and two outriggers on the wings, sort of like a U2. The crew said you have to land perfectly straight and level, since the vertical stab is only about a foot off the ground.
My attempt at a panorama showing the wingspan.
g.
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