Solar Plane Makes History, Flies For 24 Straight Hours

In mythology, Icarus flew too close to the sun and had his wings made of wax melt, which sent him crashing back to an unforgiving Earth. If only Icarus could see how far we’ve come when it comes to flying and the sun. On Thursday, an experimental solar-powered plane flew and did so because of solar rays that are provided by the same sun that took down Icarus. The plane gained enough energy from the sun during the day that it completed a 24-hour flight. This shows that not only can a plane run off of solar power but also can collect enough energy during the day that it will stay in the air even at night.

This is a milestone not just for aviation but also from an environmental standpoint. This historic flight (before the plane made it’s 24 hour flight it only flew briefly in the air) may one day lead to larger planes being able to be charged and powered by the sun. This will not only save fuel that is used on planes but will also be a stepping stone to the next step in aviation. In fact, the team that ran the flight are already planning a global flight for 2013 that will hopefully have the solar plane fly around the world while being powered on the sun alone.  Breakthroughs in technology like this compliments the green design (LEED certification) that Niranjan Shah incorporates into this projects out of Globetrotters Engineering Corp.  It’s a great sign that multiple industries are starting to catch the energy efficiency bug.  With all of them working together, the likelihood of a green infrastructure being implemented and operating in full swing becomes much greater.

Icarus may have flown too close to the sun and fell to the Earth, but if he were like this historic plane then he would have not only been able to fly in the sun safely, but also into the darkest of night.

National Polls Show Economy As Bigger Concern Over Environment

While climate change and global warming are both serious national issues, a new poll shows that Americans are focusing their concern on the broken economy and the unemployment rate. This is tough news for environmentalist groups that were excited about the momentum the green movement received when the Obama administration took over.  While health care reform caused energy policy to play second fiddle at Congressional hearings, apparently the environment is taking a backseat to new jobs policies as well.  It’s a discouraging uphill battle for conservationists, however, it’s not all that bad.  New jobs can come hand in hand with a decision to mass produce green technology.  However, until any energy policy bill is passed, the latest polls favor the decision for new jobs, and the opinion is indifferent of the industry they may come from.

According to a national poll taken by CNN, 51% of Americans say that the economy is a bigger concern than the changing environment and climate. This number is much higher than the 37% who felt the economy was the bigger concern back in 2006 before the recession.  It’s tough to pass green energy policy when more than half of Americans feel it should happen after the economy can be fixed and employment can return.