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A solar vehicle or solar electric vehicle is an electric vehicle powered completely or significantly by direct solar energy. Usually, photovoltaic (PV) cells contained in solar panels convert the sun's energy directly into electric energy.
An electric aircraft is an aircraft powered by electricity. Electric aircraft are seen as a way to reduce the environmental effects of aviation, providing zero emissions and quieter flights. Electricity may be supplied by a variety of methods, the most common being batteries. Most have electric motors driving propellers or turbines.
A hydrogen-powered aircraft is an aeroplane that uses hydrogen fuel as a power source. Hydrogen can either be burned in a jet engine or another kind of internal combustion engine, or can be used to power a fuel cell to generate electricity to power an electric propulsor. It cannot be stored in a traditional wet wing, and hydrogen tanks have to be housed in the fuselage or be supported by the wing.
The Solar Challenger was a solar-powered electric aircraft designed by Paul MacCready's AeroVironment. The aircraft was designed as an improvement on the Gossamer Penguin, which in turn was a solar-powered variant of the human-powered Gossamer Albatross. It was powered entirely by the photovoltaic cells on its wing and stabilizer, without even reserve batteries, and was the first such craft capable of long-distance flight. In 1981, it successfully completed a 163-mile (262 km) demonstration flight from France to England.
The Zephyr is a series of high-altitude platform station aircraft produced by Airbus. They were designed originally by QinetiQ, a commercial offshoot of the UK Ministry of Defence. In July 2010, the Zephyr 7 flew during 14 days. In March 2013, the project was sold to Airbus Defence and Space. In the summer of 2022, the Zephyr 8/S flew during 64 days.
The Yuneec International E430 is a Chinese two-seat electric aircraft that was designed for commercial production by electric model aircraft manufacturer Yuneec International. The first flight of the E430 took place from the Yuneec factory near Shanghai, China on June 12, 2009.
The AstroFlight Sunrise was an uncrewed experimental electric aircraft technology demonstrator and the first aircraft to fly on solar power.
The Pipistrel Taurus is a Slovenian self-launched two-seat microlight glider designed and built by Pipistrel.
Eric Raymond is an American Certified Flight Instructor, Glider (sailplane) pilot, hang gliding pilot and designer of solar-powered airplanes.
The Solar-Powered Aircraft Developments Solar One is a British mid-wing, experimental, manned solar-powered aircraft that was designed by David Williams and produced by Solar-Powered Aircraft Developments under the direction of Freddie To. On 13 June 1979 it became one of the first solar-powered aircraft to fly, after the unmanned AstroFlight Sunrise and the manned Mauro Solar Riser, and the first successful British solar-powered aircraft.
The Mauro Solar Riser is an American biplane ultralight electric aircraft that was the first crewed aircraft to fly on solar power. It was also only the second solar-powered aircraft to fly, after the uncrewed AstroFlight Sunrise, which had first flown 4+1⁄2 years earlier.
The e-Genius is a crewed electric airplane, which was developed by the Institute of Aircraft Design at the University of Stuttgart and first flew in May 2011.
The Electric Aircraft Corporation ElectraFlyer-C is an American experimental electric aircraft that was designed by Randall Fishman and produced by his company Electric Aircraft Corporation in 2008. The aircraft is a converted Monnett Moni motor glider intended to test electric propulsion technology for the future Electric Aircraft Corporation ElectraFlyer-X.
The Airbus E-Fan is a prototype two-seater electric aircraft that was under development by Airbus. It was flown in front of the world press at the Farnborough Airshow in the United Kingdom in July 2014. The target market was intended to be pilot training, but production of the aircraft was cancelled in April 2017.
The NASA X-57 Maxwell was an experimental aircraft being developed by NASA, intended to demonstrate technology to reduce fuel use, emissions, and noise. The first flight of the X-57 was scheduled to take place in 2023, but the program was cancelled due to problems with the propulsion system.
The Eviation Alice is an electric aircraft designed to accommodate nine passengers and two crew members. First developed in Israel, its construction incorporates 95% composite material, is powered by two electric motors, and has a T-tail. The prototype first flew on 27 September 2022.
SolarStratos is an aeronautical project aimed at flying a solar-powered airplane for the first time to the stratosphere. The SolarStratos airplane is equipped with solar cells but is not able to fly directly on solar power, thus is accurately described as a battery powered electric airplane that is equipped with solar cells; it is planned to be the first crewed solar-equipped aircraft to enter the stratosphere.
The VoltAero Cassio is a family of hybrid electric aircraft being developed by startup company VoltAero. The company plans to produce three configurations of the Cassio aircraft: the four-place Cassio 330, the six-place Cassio 480, and the ten-place Cassio 600.
The Pipistrel Velis Electro is a Slovenian light aircraft, designed and produced by Pipistrel of Ajdovščina. The aircraft was EASA CS-LSA fully electric type certified in June 2020 and it is intended primarily for the training aircraft role, particularly multiple successive take-off and landings at the airfield. The design is the first type certified electric aircraft and is supplied complete and ready-to-fly.
References
- ↑ "FLIGHT LOG". Solar Flight. Retrieved 2021-04-30.
- ↑ du Bessé, Alessandro (June 12, 2019). "Solar Flight: Building Innovative Solar Powered Aircraft". IMPAKTER. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2023.
- ↑ "Sun Powers First Two-Place Electric Aircraft". Sport Aviation: 14. July 2014.