Are Solar-Powered Airplanes in Our Future?

While solar-powered planes are obviously the much better choice for the environment and people are becoming invested in using solar power in any way possible, does that mean that solar-powered airplanes are actually in our future? Several factors need to be taken into account in order to figure out if a future with solar-powered airplanes is possible. Even if it’s possible, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’d be a decent alternative to a traditional aircraft, either. Things like weight and power must be taken into account to figure out how sustainable a solar-powered airplane actually is.

How Much the Plane Weighs

The problem with a plane’s weight is the impact that that has on how fast it can actually fly. In other words, a large airplane carrying a lot of passengers would need much more power to operate than a small plane with just the pilot in it. This means that a solar plane would need to be light enough to operate with little power, making it possible to harness enough energy from the sun to keep it in the air and also meaning it wouldn’t need to go as fast to stay in motion.

The Plane’s Glide Ratio

Planes that have a high glide ratio have large wingspans and are light. This means that a solar-powered plane would also have a high glide ratio, allowing it to glide for long distances and making it more efficient in that regard than a heavy, condensed plane.

Is Commercial Flight Possible?

Looking at these qualifications, it’s apparent that commercial flight using solar planes would probably be impossible. For starters, a commercial plane is already very large, to begin with, making it not as ideal for solar energy. On top of that, with every passenger that boards, the weight increases, making it less and less viable for being solar powered. After an entire commercial flight is boarded, it would weigh far too much for the energy production to sustain that amount of weight. On top of all that, there is also a limit to the number of solar panels allowed on the wings of solar planes, meaning limited space and less likely chance that there would be enough panels to sustain the weight.

Solar planes also maintain very low speeds, only going up to around 30 miles per hour. Compare that to a commercial plane, which goes on average about 500 miles per hour. A person would be better off just driving or taking a boat to their destination than taking a solar plane.

Lastly, a solar plane relies on battery-generated energy at night. Meaning that if the batteries run out, (which occurs after about 1000km) the plane would end up crashing.

While huge strides in solar energy are being taken all the time, and perhaps someday we’ll have created more energy dense batteries capable of maintaining long solar flights, at the moment, it’s practically impossible.

So, What are Solar Planes Used For?

While many hear “plane” and think of its commercial uses, solar-powered air crafts have flown for other purposes.

The Solar Impulse, for example, was essentially a test plane, a solar plane that flew around the around.

The Zephyr is amazingly capable of flying up to 155 miles per hour, go up to 132,000 feet, and fly for several months at that altitude.

While there are still many challenged to overcome when figuring out solar-powered airplanes, the payoff could be enormous.

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