Solar-powered UAV as Atmospheric Satellites

Conventional satellites may be decent at their jobs, but they do have some drawbacks – the spacecraft themselves are quite expensive, getting them into orbit is also a costly process, and they can’t be reclaimed once they’re in use. A New Mexico company, Titan Aerospace, founded in 2012, establish serious steps to launch an unmanned aircraft that can function as a satellite. This unmanned aircraft is expected to cut the cost of expenses for the shipping cost of conventional satellites into space.

Titan Aerospace's Solara in flight. (Picture from: http://www.gizmag.com/)

As quoted from Phys.org, the exhibition and conference event of the Association of Unmanned Systems International (AUVSI) in Washington, the company introduced the unmanned aircraft, named Solara 50 and Solara 60. With its ability to produce energy from the sunlight, these aircraft will be more durable when it airs and has a longer durability than other aircraft. The aircraft is capable of flying at the height of the sky last for weeks, even years.

One example is the Titan Aerospace Solara 50, which has the potential to carry up to 70 pounds (31.75 kilograms) of payload and stay aloft at an altitude of 60,000 to 70,000 feet (18.3 to 21.3 kilometers) and remain there for years. Of course, in the current security-focused environment, the initial targets for these drones will most likely be military and policing applications with their enormous budgets. But, as the technology is developed and becomes available, scientific and civilian commercial uses for these drones will come into play.

The Solara 50 has a 50 m (164 feet) wingspan. The upper surfaces of its wings and tail are packed with over 3,000 photovoltaic cells capable of generating up to 7 kilowatts. Titan is also developing a larger model, the Solara 60, which will be able to carry a larger payload of up to 250 pounds (113.4 kilograms). Furthermore, the Solara 60 could also provide 100 watts to the payload, enabling quite a range of equipment to be powered on board the craft.

Comes with the ability to fly at a certain altitude, and the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) also has the flight durability in the air. According to Green Light, a company that has been test the UAV in the New Mexico sky with the smaller Solara concept, which has a wingspan of 10 m (33 feet). The Titan Aerospace-built aircraft is launched by way of thrown into the air like a slingshot. The UAV is capable of carrying payloads supporting devices such as telecommunications equipment, surveillance, and atmospheric sensors. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | TITAN AEROSPACE | PHYS.ORG | GIZMAG | RIF | PIKIRAN RAKYAT 12092013]

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