
Solar Impulse plane starts 24-hour test flight - pierrefar
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/science_and_environment/10534960.stm
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vollmond
Looks like they have an actual cockpit and pilot. I would have thought this
would be a good use case for remote control. What reason is there to put a
pilot in a (I assume) low-maneuverability prototype such as this?

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Groxx
For the press and for the record, most likely. Both result in them getting
more funding for round n+1.

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pavel_lishin
It's probably more likely that a pilot would be able to land the plane in case
of a failure more so than an autopilot could. That plane probably isn't cheap,
they don't want it to come down in someone's swimming pool.

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vollmond
I think GP had it right - now that it's landed and I've read the new article,
I see it mentioned that they set a record specifically for _manned_ solar-
powered aircraft.

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Groxx
The video shows a freakishly-low take-off speed o_O It looks like you could
practically jog along side it, though that could just be from its size.

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incomethax
"He is to take the aircraft to an altitude of 27,900ft (8,500m) by late
Wednesday, when the sun's rays stop being strong enough to supply the solar
cells with energy."

I'm just a bit confused by this. Wouldn't the sun's rays be stronger at higher
altitudes because of having to travel through less atmosphere, and therefore
less diffraction from the air?

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AndrewS
I think they mean time of day, not altitude. Makes more sense without the
comma.

