150 hours around the world by solar plane

A new project, called Albatross, is aiming to create a solar-powered aircraft that could make the first non-stop flight around the world.

Researchers still have more data to collect before starting the project in 2020. The photovoltaic laboratory was launched at the end of October in Skolkovo, Russia's largest technology center, located in Moscow.

As part of the project, the developers launched a photovoltaic flying vehicle laboratory, a method of converting solar energy into electrical energy. It is equipped with unique and flexible solar modules manufactured by the Moscow, Russia-based company TEEMP.

“These solar modules will be 22% more efficient than before, and will be able to absorb both forms of sunlight: direct and reflected,” said Sergey Kurilov, General Director of TEEMP.

Flexible solar modules are installed on the upper and lower surfaces of the wings, roof and fuselage. An electric heater allows the aircraft to maintain a suitable temperature inside during long flights at high altitudes.

Mikhail Lifshits, head of the Albatross project, said that, in addition to a series of new technological solutions to realize a round-the-world flight, the photovoltaic laboratory is the most important stage in this process.

“We still don’t know how much solar energy an aircraft will be able to absorb at different latitudes and at different times of the day,” he said. “And manufacturers need to calculate more accurately to design aircraft.”

The round-the-world flight will take place at an altitude of 12 to 14 kilometers, with an average speed of 210 kilometers per hour. The plane is expected to cover a distance of 35,000 kilometers in 150 hours, with a route passing through Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and South Africa.

An estimated 80% of the flight's journey will be over the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans.