Home/Posts Tagged ‘flight’
Posts Tagged ‘flight’
Science & Technology, Videos & Documentaries, Weird Stuff, May 25th, 2012,
In preparation for its first round-the-world flight, the sun-powered Solar Impulse aircraft has completed the first leg of its flight across the Mediterranean by landing safely in Madrid this morning. The experimental solar airplane was making the first leg of its journey from Payerne, Switzerland to Rabat, Morocco. Though the plane has a wingspan comparable to a large jet, it only weighs as much as a mid-sized car. Lone pilot Andre Borschberg is quoted by AFP: The flight went very well and thanks to the team of meteorologists, everything went according to the plan: it was extraordinary. It was…
Tags: flight, impulse, plane, Solar
Animals, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, Feb 8th, 2012,
A rare Chioninia lizard from Cape Verde climbed into a tourist’s luggage before she boarded her flight from the African islands to the UK. The lizard survived a 3,000-mile (5,000 km) flight in a cold luggage hold, followed by a machine wash cycle at the tourist’s home in Somerset, UK. Sue Banwell-Moore found the lizard after removing her washing from the machine. She assumed it was dead until it surprisingly recovered. From the Guardian: I was hanging out the washing on the clothes dryer and I looked down and there was this lizard there. I thought he was dead…
Tags: Cape Verde, Chioninia, flight, lizard, UK, washing machine
Science & Technology, Videos & Documentaries, Weird Stuff, Jul 8th, 2010,
I recently wrote about lightweight manned electric airplanes making groundbreaking 2 and 3-hour flights. As impressive as this may sound, a Swiss solar-powered plane has just demolished these achievements by a ‘comfortable’ margin of 23 hours. On Thursday morning a former jet pilot in Switzerland’s air force successfully landed Solar Impulse, a four engine solar aircraft, near the Swiss capital of Bern. The landing followed an incredible 26-hour long flight; the longest and highest – at 8,700m or 28,543ft – ever recorded solar-powered airplane flight. From a BBC News report: The plane has 12,000 solar cells arranged on its wingspan…
Tags: aircraft, Airplane, cells, flight, plane, report, Solar, Solar Impulse, Swiss, Switzerland
Climate Change, Videos & Documentaries, Apr 21st, 2010,
Though some flight restrictions are still in place due to remaining concerns about the ash cloud over Europe, most airspace has reopened. Now airlines face the massive task of getting hundreds of thousands of passengers home. Combine this with the criticisms already being directed towards European governments and the airline industry; and the possibility that Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano could erupt again. From a BBC News report: Frances Tuke, spokeswoman for travel body Abta, said the return to normality would be slow and there was also a risk the ash cloud could return. Check out the Guardian’s LIVE blog on the…
Tags: ash, ban, Europe, Eyjafjallajokull, flight, Guardian, Iceland, volcano
Politics, Apr 19th, 2010,
The Telegraph reports that the ash cloud from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano that lingers over much of Europe could continue to be blown over the UK until Friday, but specific conditions will depend on wind directions and the height of the ash plume. An article in the Guardian tells of how the UK government is attempting to find solutions for the massive amount of British tourists and travelers stuck overseas. Bus, ferry and train services have all increased their capacities, while an aircraft carrier and two assault ships have also been sent to the rescue: Three Royal Navy ships are on…
Tags: ash, Britons, farmers, flight, Guardian, Iceland, Kenya, Kenyan, Navy, Royal, UK, volcano
Science & Technology, Apr 16th, 2010,
Nearly all flights in UK airspace are grounded until Saturday at 01:00 since eruptions of the Eyjafjallajökull volcano on Iceland yesterday began sending vast amounts of ash into skies across Scandinavia and the British Isles. Some 17,000 flights are likely to be cancelled across Europe today. According to a report from BBC News, ‘airspace of the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, the Czech Republic and Poland is restricted as completely as in the UK’, with some restrictions in parts of Germany and northern France. A small amount of westerly bound flights from small airports in Norway, Sweden and Ireland are operating….
Tags: airspace, ash, eruptions, European, Eyjafjallajokull, flight, flights, Guardian, Iceland, UK, volcano
Science & Technology, Weird Stuff, Apr 15th, 2010,
The volcanic eruption on Iceland has resulted in the ‘most significant in living memory’, according to a BBC News report. The flight cancellations in the UK and other European countries are even more extensive than what occurred following the attacks on September 11th, 2001. As the ash moves southward from Iceland towards the British Isles and Scandinavia, the restriction on air traffic is suspected to continue after 18:00 BST. Air traffic control service Nats was quoted by the BBC saying it is ‘very unlikely that the situation over England will improve in the foreseeable future’. The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull has…
Tags: air, ash, BBC, eruption, eruptions, Eyjafjallajokull, flight, Iceland, traffic, volcano
