DailyDirt: Impractically-Powered Planes
from the urls-we-dig-up dept
Some methods of flying are better than others. Passenger comfort isn't always the top priority for some aircraft, and that's especially true when engineers are trying out really novel designs and propulsion ideas. Here are just a few examples of some new planes that aren't quite ready for commercial flight, but that look really cool on the drawing board.- A solar-powered plane prototype was demonstrated at the Paris Airshow. Unfortunately, the plane requires almost windless conditions to fly, and it's not too fast. But it *can* stay aloft almost indefinitely (greater than 24 hours so far). [url]
- The VoltAir is an all-electric plane concept with superconducting (!) electric motors... "VoltAir is an upstream research concept, not a near-term commercial approach." Duh. [url]
- If superconducting electric motors seem plausible, then using a low-energy nuclear reactor (LENR) to power a plane is just around the corner. I'd like a Mr. Fusion generator for my DeLorean, too. [url]
- To discover more cool sites about aviation, check out what's currently flying around StumbleUpon. [url]
Filed Under: electic, flying, lenr, nuclear, planes, solar, superconducting, voltair
