Posts Tagged ‘solar power’
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PAYERNE, Switzerland – A giant glider-like aircraft has completed the first night flight propelled only by solar energy.
Solar Impulse, whose wingspan is the same as an Airbus A340, flew 26 hours and 9 minutes, powered only by solar energy stored during the day. It was also the longest and highest flight in the history of solar aviation, organizers said.
Bertrand Piccard, the Swiss president of the project, best known for completing the first round-the-world flight in a hot air balloon in 1999, said the success of the flight showed the potential of renewable energies and clean technology.
“We are on the verge of the perpetual flight,” he said.
Jubilant pilot Andre Borschberg told Reuters television: “It was unbelievable, success better than we expected. We almost thought to make it longer, but we demonstrated what we wanted to demonstrate so they made me come back, so here I am.”
Borschberg, a former Swiss air force pilot who has flown for 40 years, returned to a hero’s welcome at Payerne air base in the northwestern canton of Vaud, where hundreds gathered at dawn to watch the aircraft glide onto the Tarmac at 0700 GMT.
The success of this first night flight by a solar-powered plane is crucial for the further course of the Solar Impulse project,” it said.
The Solar Impulse HB-SIA, which has 12,000 solar cells built into its 64.3-metre (193-foot) wings, is a prototype for an aircraft that its creators hope will carry out its first circumnavigation of the globe from 2012.
The next milestone will be crossing the Atlantic using a second prototype which goes into construction soon.
Sponsors of the project, whose budget is 100 million Swiss francs ($95 million), include Belgian chemicals company Solvay SA, Swiss watchmaker Omega, part of the Swatch group, and German banking giant Deutsche Bank. France’s Altran is the project’s engineering partner.
Solar Automobile
Posted on: July 8, 2010
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Solar energy car is a car to drive on the solar energy. Compared with the traditional engine drive cars, solar car is true zero emissions. Because of its characteristics of environmental protection, solar cars, many countries have advocated the development of automobile industry of and vigorous.
Solar car the a-si car solar power in automotive applications, will be able to effectively reduce the global environment pollution, creating clean living environment, along with the global economy and the rapid development of science and technology, solar car as an industry has not a myth. Burning gasoline cars in the city is an important source of pollution, the automobile exhaust emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides will include caused by air pollution, affect our health. Now scientists are developing countries to produce less pollution of the electric car, the hope can replace burn gasoline cars. But now the main cities in power is from the burning of fossil fuels, using electric cars will increase the demand, namely the electricity power of pollutants released indirectly.
In view of this, some environmentalists is advocated the development of solar cars, car using solar energy into electrical energy into the light energy storage battery, will keep up, to promote the motor car. Because of a solar car without burning fossil fuels, so not emit pests. It has been estimated that if the car replaced by solar fuel automobile car, each car can reduce carbon dioxide emissions 43 to 54%.
Solar Power VS Fossil Fuels
Posted on: July 6, 2010
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The fossil fuel process takes a long time, and will eventually run out. But as long as the sun burns, we will have the cleaner and more portable option of PVs.
The sun’s energy is so powerful that in just 1 hour the amount of energy that falls on the earth equals the amount used by the world’s population in a whole year.
Most of the sun’s energy transforms to processes such as heat and photosynthesis, which are the driving factors behind our weather and biological systems. But it can also be captured and converted into electricity.
Solar charger has been designed to harness the sun’s energy, shortening the process of transforming it into electricity by using photovoltaic cells (PVs). PVs convert sunlight into electricity that can be used immediately. The process is clean, fast, noiseless, and—thanks to solar laptop charger—easily portable.
Here’s how it works. Light from the sun hits the solar cells, exciting electrons within the cell. Some of them break free, and are channeled through a conductive metal strip to create an electric current. This current can either be stored in a battery or used directly in the form of electricity. The stronger the sunlight and the more rays that hit the cell, the more electricity is generated.
Now consider fossil fuels. These are formed by utilizing solar energy that has been stored in plants that grew millions of years ago.
After these plants have been buried and compressed under tons of earth, they are transformed into oil. This oil is then extracted and refined, using heavy machinery that pollutes the air. The oil must then be delivered to its destination, creating a need for more polluting machinery.
Ultimately, the burning of this fuel for power has a negative impact on the delicate climatic and environmental balance of our world.
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