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from https://www.livescience.com/technology/robotics/meet-skydweller-a-solar-powered-drone-that-can-fly-for-90-days-straight-its-wider-and-160-times-lighter-than-a-boeing-747

Meet Skydweller: A solar-powered drone that can fly for 90 days straight
— it's wider and 160 times lighter than a Boeing 747
News
By Peter Ray Allison published 6 hours ago
Skydweller is a solar-powered drone that can fly for up to three
months without landing, with researchers hoping to one day achieve much
longer flight times.

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A solar-powered aircraft at Skydweller's facility at Albacete
airport on April 3, 2023, in Albacete, Castilla-La Mancha, Spain.
Skydweller is a solar-powered aircraft developed by Skydweller Aero, an Albacete-based developer of aircraft for the commercial and defense
sectors, which announced the successful completion of autonomous flight
tests in Castilla-La Mancha.
(Image credit: Rey Sotolongo/Europa Press via Getty Images)
U.S. tech startup Skydweller Aero has teamed up with Thales, a French electronics company specializing in defense systems, to develop a new
maritime surveillance drone that can stay aloft far longer than existing machines.

Skydweller powers itself purely from solar energy and aims to be capable
of continuous flight. The initial flight milestone will be for it to
remain aloft for 90 days, but ultimately it has the potential to fly for
much longer.

The solar energy that powers the Skydweller is captured by over 17,000 individual solar cells, spread across approximately 2,900 square feet
(270 square meters) of wing surface — across a wingspan of 236 feet (72
m), 25 feet (7.6 m) longer than a Boeing 747. In ideal conditions, the
solar cells can generate up to 100 kilowatts of power for the aircraft.

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During daylight hours, solar energy is used to maintain flight, power
the onboard avionics and charge batteries. The Skydweller has over 1,400
pounds (635 kilograms) of batteries, which are used to power the
aircraft through the night. This will allow Skydweller to maintain
almost continuous flight.

The Skydweller typically flies at an altitude between 24,600 and 34,400
feet (7,500 and 10,500 meters), but can fly as high as 44,600 feet
(13,600m) during the day, before dropping by 4,900 to 9,800 feet (1,500
to 3,000m)at night, as this minimizes power consumption.

Despite its similar wingspan to a long-range commercial airliner,
Skydweller weighs 160 times less than a "jumbo jet" — 2.5 metric tons at maximum capacity versus 400 tons for the 747 at full payload.

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Solar-powered aircraft are not completely new, but some designs have
suffered structural problems, including catastrophic failure mid-flight
when climbing or descending through medium altitudes (approximately 6,500-32,800 feet, or 2,000-10,000 m).

The Skydweller has been specifically designed to operate in this
altitude range, using automatic gust-load alleviation software in the
flight control system to reduce the aerodynamic loads caused by
turbulence. It has also been constructed from carbon fiber and can carry
up to 800 pounds (362 kg) of payload.

Continuous surveillance by sky
Operating an aircraft continuously and reliably for up to 90 days
necessitates a quadruple-redundant flight control system and vehicle
management system (VMS). Should one of the onboard systems fail, a
backup system can take over to maintain the flight.

Self-healing algorithms within the VMS allow any failed strings (coding
in an algorithm) to be autonomously shut down, corrected and resurrected
during flight, thereby allowing the aircraft to return to quadruple
redundancy, according to information published by company
representatives. This enables the aircraft to consistently maintain flight.

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Although the onboard batteries, once sufficiently charged, can maintain
flight during the night, their capacity will degrade over time, which
could limit the maximum patrol duration of the aircraft. Skydweller’s reliance on solar power to maintain flight means that its patrols must
also avoid areas of limited sunlight, such as polar regions during winter.

Skydweller Aero has recently partnered with Thales to equip Skydweller
with a radar surveillance system designed for maritime patrol
operations. Further test flights are planned, with the goal of extending
the maximum flight duration. Even so, this is a massive step forward in solar-powered flight, especially for long-term surveillance monitoring.

TOPICS
drones
Peter Ray Allison
Peter Ray Allison
Peter is a degree-qualified engineer and experienced freelance
journalist, specializing in science, technology and culture. He writes
for a variety of publications, including the BBC, Computer Weekly, IT
Pro, the Guardian and the Independent. He has worked as a technology
journalist for over ten years. Peter has a degree in computer-aided
engineering from Sheffield Hallam University. He has worked in both the engineering and architecture sectors, with various companies, including Rolls-Royce and Arup.

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