On February 2015 we mentioned a project on this blog that was an amazing adventure and, at the same time, an incredible project that is today becoming a reality.
When we published the post “Solar Impulse 2: The First Solar Plane Will Fly Around the World Without Fossil Fuels” we never thought Seville could be one of the stops chosen as part of this thrilling journey.
After taking off in New York, the solar plane flew across the Atlantic Ocean and reached Seville a little over 70 hours later.
During this, its 15th stage, the plane was piloted by Bertrand Piccard, who was seen beaming with joy after his arrival.
Good morning #Seville! Do you have a lot of direct flights from #NYC? 😉 #futureisclean pic.twitter.com/ZCSMOOgva4
— Bertrand PICCARD (@bertrandpiccard) 23 de junio de 2016
SLOWLY BUT SURELY
The Impulse 2 solar plane finally began its adventure in Abu Dhabi, in the Arab Emirates, on March 9th, 2015. As foreseen, it travelled through India, Myanmar, China, and USA, arriving to Hawaii on July 3rd, 2015. It had to remain there for almost 10 months due to technical issues before continuing its journey. Finally, it arrived to New York on June 11th 2016 and, on June 23rd, to Seville.
It’s clear that the 75 km/h speed the solar plane can reach, when faced against the 900 km/h of a commercial airplane may make us think this plane is still a utopia from a practical point of view, but what is being proven here is that we are on the verge of a new era, a sustainable age where technology offers us a smarter use of energy, the use of renewable energies and its storage to be used rationally.
This kind of projects creates hope in a consumption-based society.
We will follow the Impulse 2 solar plane closely while it takes its final steps until reaching Myanmar again, the start and end point of this exciting adventure.