04 July 2008

AN INCREDIBLE U.A.V.

First you see three lines flying, then they become one, and later they take a “Z” shape.

Your sight is OK. You are not having hallucinations. It will be true and real. And of course, it is not the product of some presumed “extraterrestrial” technology.

Get the facts. Read this:

Aurora Odysseus UAV to Stay Aloft For Five Years on Solar Power

Aurora Flight Sciences has announced that it has been awarded a contract to develop a radical new aircraft that can stay aloft for up to five years. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) made the award under a program known as “Vulture”.

The objective of the Vulture program is to develop an aircraft capable of remaining on-station uninterrupted for over five years to perform intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR), and communication missions over an area of interest. The technology challenges include development of energy management and reliability technologies capable of allowing the aircraft to operate continuously for such extended duration. Vulture, in effect, will be a re-taskable, persistent pseudo-satellite capability, in an aircraft package.

Aurora’s design is called “Odysseus”. The concept uses solar energy to power the aircraft during daylight, and stored solar energy to power the aircraft at night. The aircraft is designed to fly in the stratosphere throughout its mission.

Aurora foresees a broad range of potential applications once Odysseus has been proven. Prime among these are global climate change research, weather monitoring, and regional-scale telecommunications.



Once completed, the Vulture will have a 152.4 meters wingspan, will be able to lift itself to heights of 27,432 meters above ground and should stay into the Earth's atmosphere up to five years without requiring any maintenance or fueling. Additionally, the Vulture must carry a 454.5 kilograms payload and generate at least 5 kilowatts of electric power in order to remain operational at all time.

Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/Vulture-UAV-to-Glide-in-the-Sky-for-5-Years-84144.shtml

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