Tag: solar-powered

Solar Impulse 2, Famous for Around-the-World Flight, Crashes Into Gulf Waters

Aerotime reports, “Solar Impulse 2, the experimental solar-powered aircraft which became famous in 2016 after completing a global circumnavigation, has crashed into the sea off the coast of Mississippi on May 4, 2026.  The experimental aircraft was operating for Skydweller Aero, a company developing long-endurance, solar-powered platforms for surveillance and reconnaissance missions. This US-Spanish company acquired Solar Impulse 2 in 2019 and converted it to an unmanned aircraft for use in its own development programs.”
Full Story (Aerotime)

 

 

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The Skydweller aircraft
(New Scientist; YouTube)

NASA Reestablishes Contact with InSight Lander

CNET News reports that NASA’s InSight lander “went into safe mode – a mode designed to protect the lander – on Jan. 7 after a dust storm reduced sunlight to the solar-powered machine.” NASA JPL said Tuesday, “The mission’s team reestablished contact with InSight Jan. 10, finding that its power was holding steady and, while low, was unlikely to be draining the lander’s batteries.”
Full Story (CNET News)