Solar Powered Aircraft
ABSTRACT:
HELIOS project was a part of NASA's ERAST programme (Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology). It was developed by NASA and Californian company AeroVironment Inc. ERAST programme develops pilotless solar powered airplane technology. The HELIOS construction is based upon its predecessors like NASA's solar plane Pathfinder, which was successfully tested a few years prior to HELIOS. Due to its speed HELIOS was able to fly over the same spot for days or weeks, therefore, in the future such aircrafts could substitute communication satellites. In the test flight on 13th August 2001, HELIOS reached the height of almost 30,000 meters. HELIOS was a slow airplane - if you ride a bicycle fast, you are quicker than HELIOS. It was a remotely controlled plane with no crew weighting less than most cars. However, it flew higher than any other plane powered solely by solar energy.
In the future, such planes will also be used for interesting research purposes and missions, such as: Fly through the volcano for the purposes of volcano plume study
Fly over the North and South Poles Fly for weeks and months at a time collecting scientific data, which varies according to the sun position or the season of the year
Explore conditions on Mars. History in brief: | Gossamer Albatros Gossamer Penguin: | | Gossamer Albatross is best known for completing the first completely human powered flight across the English Channel in 1979. The Albatross II was the backup plane for this flight. It was equipped with a DC battery-powered electric motor and flight instruments for the NASA research program. NASA completed its flight testing of the Gossamer Albatross II in April, 1980. More about the "Father of Human Powered Flight" Dr.Paul Mac Cready. | | Pathfinder: | | Pathfinder was a solar-powered, remotely piloted flying wing aircraft used to demonstrate the use of solar power for
HELIOS project was a part of NASA's ERAST programme (Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology). It was developed by NASA and Californian company AeroVironment Inc. ERAST programme develops pilotless solar powered airplane technology. The HELIOS construction is based upon its predecessors like NASA's solar plane Pathfinder, which was successfully tested a few years prior to HELIOS. Due to its speed HELIOS was able to fly over the same spot for days or weeks, therefore, in the future such aircrafts could substitute communication satellites. In the test flight on 13th August 2001, HELIOS reached the height of almost 30,000 meters. HELIOS was a slow airplane - if you ride a bicycle fast, you are quicker than HELIOS. It was a remotely controlled plane with no crew weighting less than most cars. However, it flew higher than any other plane powered solely by solar energy.
In the future, such planes will also be used for interesting research purposes and missions, such as: Fly through the volcano for the purposes of volcano plume study
Fly over the North and South Poles Fly for weeks and months at a time collecting scientific data, which varies according to the sun position or the season of the year
Explore conditions on Mars. History in brief: | Gossamer Albatros Gossamer Penguin: | | Gossamer Albatross is best known for completing the first completely human powered flight across the English Channel in 1979. The Albatross II was the backup plane for this flight. It was equipped with a DC battery-powered electric motor and flight instruments for the NASA research program. NASA completed its flight testing of the Gossamer Albatross II in April, 1980. More about the "Father of Human Powered Flight" Dr.Paul Mac Cready. | | Pathfinder: | | Pathfinder was a solar-powered, remotely piloted flying wing aircraft used to demonstrate the use of solar power for