WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2003
Round the world on sun power
REUTERS
LAUSANNE : Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard, the first man to pilot a balloon around the world non-stop, has announced plans to circle the planet in a specially built solar-powered aircraft.
Piccard, who circumnavigated the earth in 1999 with Brian Jones of Britain , will lead a team of scientists and aviators in his attempt to fly around the world in a fuel-free plane - to be called Solar Impulse.
"A century after the Wright brothers' first flight, we look forward to adding new pages to solar aviation," Piccard, 54, said. "It is a colossal challenge. We hope to stimulate scientific research in fields that involve aerodynamics, composite materials and methods of producing and storing energy."
Lausanne 's Federal Institute of Technology will help Piccard's team build an aircraft that can store enough power to stay in the air throughout the night. Initial test flights are planned for 2006 with a flight of at least 36 hours set for the following year.
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