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The European Tour with Sunseeker II Finishes on the Southern Coast of Spain The European Tour draws to a close in the coastal town of Almeria after crossing France and Spain. During the Tour the Sunseeker established new records for electric aircraft, navigated over Europe's most challenging terrain and faced some of the continent's most demanding weather conditions. proving once again the viability of renewable energy sources for sport aircraft and the world at large. |
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World Air Games 2009 Comes to a Close with an Official FAI Altitude Record set by Sunseeker II and Top Honors Awarded for Experimental Category Aircraft On the 12th of June 2009, The Sunseeker II reached an altitude of 20,387 feet above Torino. This marks the highest altitude that Eric Raymond has so far taken the craft and also the highest altitude ever reached by a solar-powered or electrically-powered aircraft! Eric Raymond and the Sunseeker also accepted a gold medal awarded by a panel of World Air Games judges in the Experimental Aircraft category to the aircraft displaying the finest workmanship. |
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First Crossing of the Alps in a Solar Airplane Completed by Eric Raymond 99 years after the first crossing of the Alps in an airplane by Geo Chávez, flying a Eric Raymond’s flight across the Alps was just the first flight for the European Tour, which will now continue down the entire length of Italy with the goal of reaching Mount Etna on the island of Sicily. |
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Sunseeker II is awarded 2009 E-flight award at AERO Friedrichshafen At the first stop of Solar Flight’s Tour, Eric Raymond and the Sunseeker II were presented with the first semi-annual E-filght award for the most innovative project at the expo. This year was the first for AERO’s E-flight expo, a ‘show within a show’ intended to showcase electric, ecological and evolutionary aircraft projects. The close of AERO Friedrichshafen 2009 marks the begining of Solar Flight’s European Tour with Sunseeker II flown by the aircraft’s designer, Eric Raymond. The Tour aims to bring attention to the potential that solar and electric power holds for sport aircraft, transportation and energy solutions. |
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| A Tour of Europe in a Solar Airplane Announced | |||
In the summer of 1990 Eric Raymond crossed the United States in Sunseeker I with 21 flights and 121 hours in the air. Today, this remains the longest journey ever completed by a solar-powered aircraft. Since that expedition many technological advances have been made in fields relevant to electric vehicles and solar power. Sunseeker II incorporates many of these advancements including more efficient solar panels, more powerful batteries and a more refined electronics system. The new airplane is the most capable solar powered airplane ever built and is ready once again to take to the skies, this time over Europe, in order to demonstrate the viability of renewable energy sources for the world today. On the first leg of the tour we will head south, down the entire length of Italy until we reach Mount Etna on the island of Sicily. The second leg will take us east over the Austrian Dolomites, through Hungary and finally into Slovenia. We will return from this leg in time for a presentation at the World Air Games in Torino, Italy (June 6-14). At this event we hope to fly alongside fellow solar aviators from the University of Stuttgart in their airplane Icare II. Following this exhibition, Eric Raymond will prepare for an historic flight from Zurich non-stop to Barcelona. If successful, this will be the longest flight ever completed by a solar airplane! Check our Journal and Media pages to follow us along the Tour and find out where we will be so you can come out, see the Sunseeker fly and say hello! |
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| Sunseeker II | |||
| After successfully crossing the United States in Sunseeker I, a long series of modifications and refinements led to an almost entirely new airplane. In 2002 a new wing was constructed with a different plan form, more surface area for solar cell coverage, and a new technique for integrating the latest generation of solar cells into the actual wing structure rather than bonding them to the surface. The new aircraft features a unique teetering propeller, which drastically reduces vibration. In 2006, a new motor was constructed for the airplane that is twice as powerful as Sunseeker I's motor. An improved tail was fitted to the aircraft in addition to a new set of control electronics designed by Alan Cocconi for the batteries and solar arrays. The new electronics greatly increase the system's efficiency. As a final touch, the new aircraft is fitted with four packs of advanced lithium polymer batteries, which find their home in the wings of the airplane. | |||
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| Specifications: | |||
Crew: 1 Length: 7 mWing span: 17 m Empty weight: 120 kg Wing Area: 12.8 m^2 |
Gross weight: 230 kg Cruise speed: 65 km/h Vne: 160 km/h Glide ratio (L/D max): 35/1 Minimum sink rate: 0.5 m/s |
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© 2009 Solar Flight |
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