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Pathfinder aircraft prepared for flight at dawn on lakebed Pathfinder aircraft prepared for flight at dawn on lakebed

Photo Number: EC96-43817-2
Photo Date: Nov. 1996

Formats: 558x480 JPEG Image (48 KBytes)
1190x1024 JPEG Image (309 KBytes)
3030x2606 JPEG Image (3,063 KBytes)

Photo
Description:
The Pathfinder solar-powered research aircraft is silhouetted by the morning sun on the bed of Rogers Dry Lake as technicians prepare it for flight. The unique remotely piloted flying wing flew for two hours under control of a ground-based pilot on Nov. 19, 1996, at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, while engineers checked out various aircraft systems.

Project
Description:
Pathfinder was a lightweight, solar-powered, remotely piloted flying wing aircraft used to demonstrate the use of solar power for long-duration, high-altitude flight. Its name denotes its mission as the "Pathfinder" or first in a series of solar-powered aircraft that will be able to remain airborne for weeks or months on scientific sampling and imaging missions.

Solar arrays covered most of the upper wing surface of the Pathfinder aircraft. These arrays provided up to 8,000 watts of power at high noon on a clear summer day. That power fed the aircraft’s six electric motors as well as its avionics, communications, and other electrical systems. Pathfinder also had a backup battery system that could provide power for two to five hours, allowing for limited-duration flight after dark.

Pathfinder flew at airspeeds of only 15 to 20 mph. Pitch control was maintained by using tiny elevators on the trailing edge of the wing while turns and yaw control were accomplished by slowing down or speeding up the motors on the outboard sections of the wing. On September 11, 1995, Pathfinder set a new altitude record for solar-powered aircraft of 50,567 feet above Edwards Air Force Base, California, on a 12-hour flight. On July 7, 1997, it set another, unofficial record of 71,500 feet at the Pacific Missile Range Facility, Kauai, Hawaii.

In 1998, Pathfinder was modified into the longer-winged Pathfinder Plus configuration. (See the Pathfinder Plus photos and project description.)


NASA Photo by: Carla Thomas

Keywords: Pathfinder; solar-powered; ERAST; Environmental Research Aircraft and Sensor Technology; AeroVironment; high-altitude; world record; Gossamer Condor; Albatross; Solar Challenger; HALSOL; High Altitude Solar; Hawaii; Kauai


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