Around the world, solar power

[joy ride]

BBC News - Solar plane prepares for record attempt (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-31790875)

[Standby Scum]

SOLAR2 has been airborne for half a day and is currently weaving back and forth Northwest of Muscat.
Solar Impulse RTW - 1st Leg from Abu Dhabi to Muscat (http://www.solarimpulse.com/widget-flight_wrapup)
Flightradar24.com - Live flight tracker! (http://www.flightradar24.com/SOLAR2/5b4d843)

EDIT:- Hypoxia.

[Farrell]

I took some photos a few minutes ago as it landed in Muscat.
So quiet!

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/quartermilefinal/IMG_3649_zpsdm7i9gaw.jpg

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b140/quartermilefinal/IMG_3654_zpsxclldksi.jpg

[ChrisJ800]

That's an impressive if somewhat fragile looking aircraft. Good luck on their voyage.

[KelvinD]

I wonder if it all went wrong? There were reports earlier today saying an Indigo flight from Mumbai to Ahmedabad had to return to Mumbai as Solar Impulse was blocking the runway at Ahmedabad.

[DaveReidUK]

Website simply showing that they landed at Ahmedabad 17:55Z yesterday.

[Fantome]

from the official website -

Unveiling of the Round-The-World Route

Solar Impulse 2 (Si2) will take-off from Abu Dhabi, crossing two oceans and four continents, to complete its round the world flight. Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg, the Swiss co-founders and pilots of Solar Impulse, along with their Partners, today revealed the detailed global flight route of Solar Impulse 2 (Si2). The first solar-powered plane able to fly day and night will land in 12 locations across the world and travel 35,000 kilometres in the first attempt to fly around the globe without using a drop of fuel. For pilots Piccard and Borschberg, the drive behind their mission is to demonstrate how clean technologies and a pioneering spirit can change the world. Si2 will take-off from Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, in late February or early March and return by late July or early August 2015. The route includes stops in Muscat, Oman; Ahmedabad and Varanasi, India; Mandalay, Myanmar; and Chongqing and Nanjing, China. After crossing the Pacific Ocean via Hawaii, Si2 will fly across the Continental U.S.A. stopping in three locations – Phoenix, and New York City at JFK. A location in the Midwest will be decided dependent on weather conditions. After crossing the Atlantic, the final legs include a stop-over in Southern Europe or North Africa before arriving back in Abu Dhabi.

Pour en savoir plus : prenez contact avec notre secrétariat pour le copyright des textes et photos.

Bertrand Piccard - le site officiel de Bertrand Piccard (http://bertrandpiccard.com/home?width=1256#1#ixzz3U3yZ5rjp)

[Farrell]

I thought this event would have received far more interest on a forum like Pprune.

[joy ride]

Me too Farrell!

[ChrisJ800]

Next leg was to start today but been delayed till March 17 due rain.

[Dubaian]

Seems they cooked the batteries on the way to Hawaii and they must be replaced. That will take too long to complete before the northern hemisphere daylight hours shorten to the point that it can't recharge sufficiently to sustain 24 hour flights.


So it's now likely to attempt to complete the voyage recommencing next April from Hawaii. With a lot of replacement battery cells fitted.


How do we feel about a successful RTW flight ending next year some time - but with a large number of battery cells replaced? Does that invalidate the attempt - or just reduce it's value?