Alan Cocconi is a steadfast designer of things electric. He has recently set another record using technology on which he has a firm grip. He managed
to keep a solar glider aloft for two days.
Alan has permanently changed many preconceptions about electric vehicles. Fortunately, someone showed me a picture of a high performance sportscar,
a Tzero, powered by batteries several years ago. Since then there's been a lot of progress with those who've implemented his designs.After a little
research I found AC Propulsion, then the designer's name, Alan Cocconi.The name sounded familiar and I was delighted to discover that he was in fact the brother of a girl who'd been
in one of my math classes in high school more years ago than I care to remember.
The SoLong is an electric-powered UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) that collects solar energy from photo-voltaic arrays laminated into its wings. It uses energy so efficiently that it can fly all night on energy it gathers from the sun during the day. Remaining aloft for two nights is the milestone for sustainable flight. One night is possible just by discharging the batteries, but two or more nights means that the plane has to fully recoup and store the energy used at night while flying in the sunlight the following day. Once that is achieved, the cycle can repeat continually, and keep the plane airborne indefinitely.
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