In an age where fuel efficiency and carbon reduction are beginning to permeate into the ethos, plane travel and transport is still pretty much solely dependent on fossil fuel. With this dependancy comes the inevitable carbon dioxide emissions, of which the aviation industry is responsible for more than 5% of global total annually.
While some airlines are beginning to test ‘less bad’ biofuels, there still is no real ‘fossil-fuel free’ alternative on the horizon. Bertrand Piccard wants to change that. In 2012 he plans to fly a plane around the world…solely on solar power.
The project is called Solar Impulse and according to the website, it plans on achieving the following:
In a world depending on fossil energies, the Solar Impulse project is a paradox, almost a provocation: it aims to have an airplane take off and fly…propelled uniquely by solar energy, right round the world without fuel or pollution. An unachievable goal without pushing back the current technological limits in all fields…
The first prototype of the plane that will achieve this ambitious goal rolled out in Switzerland yesterday and while it did engage all 4 electric engines that will propel it, the plane did not leave the ground as it was merely a ground speed test. The final plane that will make the journey will most likely but much larger.
The Good: A possible first step toward eliminating fossil-fuel engines altogether in air travel.
The Bad: The possibility of solar powered commercial flights using current solar technology is essentially zero given the amount of power needed to lift such planes off the ground and keep them in flight.
The Bottom-Line: While this attempt to some may seem trivial to the overall future of 100% clean and renewable air travel, the same was said about the Wright Brothers flight as well and huge shifts in history were usually set in motion by humble beginnings.
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