Every day, the Solar-Powered Drone of the US Army is Achieving Unprecedented Feats.

The US Army has successfully flown a minimalist drone powered by solar energy continuously for over 40 days, surpassing a previous world record and indicating what could be the future of military reconnaissance.

The challenge: Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) systems, such as satellites and drones, play a major role in protection by gathering information the military can then use to plan its operations– but they have got their limitations.

Zephyr delivers the profits of ISR satellites and also traditional drones without many of their limits.

While satellites can stay operational for long periods, they are expensive to launch and hard to maneuver. It could also take days for the information they collect to be transmitted to Earth– time soldiers could not have on the battlefield.

The US Drones

Drones are more affordable than satellites and can provide data in real-time; however, they typically run out of fuel or battery energy after a few hours or days and they can be downed by inclement climate or anti-aircraft weapons.

A stratospheric drone: The United States Army is now testing Zephyr, a solar-powered drone built by Airbus that delivers the profits of ISR satellites and traditional drones without many of their limits.

The remote-operated aircraft flies in the stratosphere, meaning it is above the weather conditions that may ground a traditional drone. The location is also high sufficient for Zephyr to survey a wide land region. However, close sufficient to Earth’s surface that it can provide data in near-real time.

The solar-powered drone is hand-launched from a runway, no need to pay for a rocket, and despite having a wingspan of eighty-two feet, it weighs just 165 pounds.

The drone’s lightweight design enables it to remain airborne by consuming approximately the same amount of electricity as a typical commercial light bulb. This is made possible by the solar panels that cover almost every inch of the aircraft’s exterior surface and its internal batteries. The most remarkable point about Zephyr, though, is its endurance.

In 2018, one of the aircraft flew for almost twenty-six days direct, and one Zephyr, the Military launched on June 15th, 2022, was still flying as of July 29th, setting a new world record for long-endurance flight while entertaining followers with its flight patterns.

Zephyr

There is no word on when that Zephyr will land, but the Army stated on July 21st that it planned to launch another one “in the coming weeks” as part of its continued testing of the aircraft.

Although the military is interested in incorporating Zephyr into its ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) arsenal, the potential uses for the lightweight solar-powered drone extend beyond the military and could also apply to civilian operations.

In 2021, Airbus and also Japanese smartphone driver NTT Docomo conducted a test demonstrating just how Zephyrs might provide wireless broadband connection to people on the ground– assisting in shutting the electronic divide.

“Billions of people worldwide suffer from poor or no connectivity,” stated Stephane Ginoux, head of the North Asia area for Airbus. “The results of these tests demonstrate to us that it is possible to use Zephyr to establish direct-to-device connectivity in the stratosphere, without the need for additional infrastructure or base stations.”

Read the original article on Free Think.