Solar Impulse Finds Harmony Between Tech & Nature Andre Borschberg - Newsweek
go to original June 29, 2016

Solar Impulse Airplane - Leg 15 - Flight New York to Seville (Solar Impulse)

The aviation industry told us it was impossible to build an airplane that could fly day and night without a drop of fuel. In 2015, Solar Impulse proved that it could be done, and together with last week’s transatlantic flight, we proved that change is possible when we have the right mindset and are not afraid to push back our own limits.

Solar Impulse is a demonstration of energy efficiency and smart energy management, made possible thanks to all our partners’ technologies. It is also a great example of how technology today has become a great game changer in so many different ways. Who could have imagined, even a few decades ago, that such things as applications on our smartphones would transform the way we consume media, access information, navigate, conduct our personal banking, shop and even know what to wear in the morning? Solar Impulse would not exist if it were not for the technologies used during all phases of the project: designing and building the airplane and managing flight tests and missions.

On the other hand, however, we also turned to nature to build an airplane that is almost silent, able to feel each movement of the atmosphere and which relies on the sun as its only source of energy. Flying across oceans with solar energy could only be done by finding the right balance between technology and nature. So why are they so often pitched against each other? Why can’t they be more in harmony for the long-term interest of humanity?

Read the rest at Newsweek

André Borschberg is the co-founder and pilot of Solar Impulse, the first airplane able to fly day and night without fuel - propelled solely by the sun’s energy. The solar-powered plane is aiming to complete a circumnavigation of the globe later this month.

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