Cool Tech Jobs : Chasing The Sun : Discovery Tech

Cool Tech Jobs: Chasing The Sun

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Solar Impulse

Solar cells will cover the entire 63-meter wingspan of the Solar Impulse, due to take off for the first time in 2012.

SOARING HIGH

There have been solar planes before, but none quite like Solar Impulse. The plane's 61-meter-long wingspan (over 200 feet) accommodates 12,000 photovoltaic cells to drive its four propellers.

To keep the plane flying through the night, any excess power is stored in lithium polymer batteries, which need to be encased in specially designed insulation so that they'll continue to function as the temperature dips below -40 degree Celsius.

The batteries, at 400 kilograms, are the heaviest thing about the otherwise gossamer aircraft, which is designed to carry only the pilot.

The initial prototype should be completed in the spring; another craft will be built for the actual round-the-world mission. Plans call for the mission flight, slated for 2011, to take place in five stages, enabling Piccard and Borschberg to take turns piloting.

SOLAR IMPULSE HEATS UP

With two years to go, design and engineering work have kicked into high gear.

Lauper painstakingly tracks every detail of every activity, from the plane's overall design to the operational minutiae of the flight. Each week, he meets with the team leaders to go over what should be getting done and what isn't.

The Solar Impulse team numbers 60 engineers and other staff, with about 100 outside advisors.

At lunchtime in the airfield's canteen, colleagues of all ages hail Lauper in a number of languages. His command of French, German, English, and the local Swiss German dialect comes in handy. He says that he spends a lot of time on the phone but that face-to-face contact is critical.

"E-mail is an information carrier," he says, "not a communicating tool."

Being at the heart of a start-up appeals to him, he says: "I have this central position. I'm involved in many discussions on the technical side but also in organizing events. And if I can help somewhere, I will help, in any kind of area. So it's very, very, very diverse. It's an adventure!"

About the Author

Giselle Weiss is a freelance writer based in Basel, Switzerland. The views expressed are the author's alone and do not represent the official position of Discovery Communications.

Get the original story on IEEE Spectrum's website.

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