When the Solar Impulse HB-SIA, a solar plane that can fly day or night without any fuel, completes the final leg of its 5000 km round trip journey between Switzerland and Morocco it will have made history and paved the way for a new frontier in aviation.
It is this accomplishment and its impact on the future potential in solar flight that has caught the eye of Soluxe Solar, a Connecticut-based solar company that honors major developments, accomplishments and innovators in the solar industry with its weekly Soluxe "Solar Flare" award.
"The ability of the Solar Impulse to make this journey without fuel has tremendous, far reaching implications on the future of solar flight and what could now be possible," says Soluxe Solar CEO Jeffrey Mayer.
"It is a significant achievement from a technological and environmental perspective and we felt the perfect honoree for this week's Solar Flare."
The Solar Impulse, which is made of carbon fibre and operates completely without fuel, began its momentous journey in May as it departed from Switzerland. The giant plane which is the size of a jumbo jet but weighs less than a family car is operated by 12,000 solar cells turning four electrical motors.
This test flight is said to be a rehearsal for a 2014 World Tour.
