Mit der Sonne um die Welt: Unsere Solar Impulse Abenteurer auf Deutsch!
André und ich haben dieses Buch geschrieben, um Ihnen zu erzählen, was die Medien und Kameras nie zu sehen bekamen: Unsere Zweifel, Ängste, Schwierigkeiten, aber auch unsere Leidenschaft, mit der wir Hindernisse überwunden haben, um unseren Traum von der Weltumrundung ohne Kraftstoffe und nur mit Sonnenenergie zu verwirklichen. Wir wollten transparent sein. Es wäre falsch, den Eindruck zu vermitteln, wir seien gefühlskalte Helden. Nein, es ging uns im Gegenteil gerade darum zu zeigen, dass das Unmögliche von all jenen machbar ist, die ihre Gewissheiten hinterfragen können und das Unbekannte und Herausforderungen als Chancen akzeptieren, die die Kreativität und Leistung beflügeln. Wir hatten uns von Anfang an gesagt, dass eine Geschichte wie diese hier vor allem dazu dienen sollte, die Leser dazu anzuspornen, ihre eigenen Träume zu verwirklichen.
Abgesehen von der ökologischen Botschaft unseres Solarflugzeugs und der Technologie, geht es in diesem Buch vor allem um das menschliche Abenteuer, das wir zu Blatt gebracht haben, um unseren Glauben an den Pioniergeist zu teilen, der neue Denk- und Handlungsweisen hervorbringt. Wir hoffen, es gefällt Ihnen ... und inspiriert Sie!
Bertrand Piccard
Mehr Informationen zum Buch und wo Sie es kaufen können, finden Sie hier:
Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg honoured by the Explorers Club in New York
Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg have been awarded the Explorers Medal by the Explorers Club in New York for flying around the world in Solar Impulse.
Bertrand was already honoured by the Explorers Club following his circumnavigation of the globe in a balloon - another first - completed with Brian Jones in 1999. During the ceremony held in New York on March 25, he declared:
" When you gave me the Explorers Medal after my balloon flight, I made you the promise to fly around the world again, but this time in a solar airplane. André and I finally made it. The duty of explorers is to continue making a cleaner world!"
For the Piccard family where exploration is a family tradition, it is another chapter in their remarkable story; both Bertrand’s father, Jacques - who in 1960 was the first person to reach the Mariana trench, the deepest-known point on the ocean floor, and his Grandfather, Auguste - who in 1931 and 1932 made the first two ascents into the stratosphere, were recipients of the Explorers Medal in 2000 and 1954 respectively.
Each year, the Explorers Club honors those individuals for their accomplishments in exploration. The Explorers Medal - the highest honor that can be bestowed by the Club - is awarded for extraordinary contributions directly in the field of exploration, scientific research, or the welfare of humanity. Past winners include Edmund Hillary, the first man to successfully ascend Mount Everest (with his climbing partner Tenzing Norgay), and astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first man to set foot on the moon. In addition to Bertrand and André, the 2017 medal has also been awarded to Nainoa Thompson for his historic work on Polynesian wayfinding.
Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg flank former President of the Explorers Club Alan Nichols, holding aloft the Explorers Club flag. Since 1918, the flag has been carried by Club members on recognized flag expeditions that further the cause of exploration and field science. To this date, there are a total of 202 individually numbered flags (Solar Impulse is #50) each with their own history.
By the beginning of April, everyone was ready for the adventure to resume and Si2 was finally cleared to return to service. A new start for the mission that called upon individual commitment, foolproof motivation, and strong team spirit and for all the same leitmotiv: “change is possible!”
2. Bertrand Piccard Live conversation with Ban Ki-moon
A unique moment connected from the aircraft while flying over the Pacific, Bertrand was in direct conversation with Ban Ki-moon and 175 political leaders. They were gathered at the United Nations during Earth Day, to ratify the COP21 Paris Climate Agreement! That day, the message of hope embodied by the airplane resonated widely through the world’s highest institutions.
3. Flying over the golden gate bridge, a gate between two worlds
In April, Bertrand ended his three days flight with an epic flyover of the Golden Gate Bridge, which for decades welcomed waves of immigrants searching for a land of freedom. A powerful symbol as Solar Impulse also seeks to offer freedom and the hope of a better life, but in the form of inexhaustible and free sources of energy.
4. Tulsa, the unexpected solution
As the days went by in Phoenix the weather over the Tornado Alley was getting increasingly problematic. But after days bending over backwards to make the operation possible, a solution was found: the MCC gave a green light to fly to Tulsa and everything was ready to welcome the silent, serene, zero fuel airplane in the “oil capital” of Oklahoma.
5. The mobile hangar incident
On 24 May in Dayton, tension was at its peak. Guided by André, the engineers in Ohio and Switzerland stayed in constant exchange for close to entire day to make calculations and ensure the plane was safe and sound after the mobile hangar had deflated on the aircraft … A relief for the whole team after a tense afternoon and night!
6. A revolutionary prototype over Manhattan
From Lehigh Valley to New York City, André flew Si2 over the Statue of Liberty and the Upper New York Bay. For the man who organized the flight missions and conceived new strategies from scratch to obtain the flyover authorizations for the experimental airplane, it was a magical moment and the accomplishment of a technological prowess when Si2 was silently gliding, free of fuel over the scintillating city lights.
7. The announcement of Solar Impulse’s legacy
Over the Atlantic Ocean Bertrand announced his intention to establish a world alliance for clean technologies that would continue the legacy of Solar Impulse, promoting concrete energy efficient solutions in order to solve many of the challenges facing society today.
8. Flyover the Egyptian Pyramids
After André crossed the Mediterranean Sea with Si2 and just before landing in Cairo International Airport, he flew over the Egyptian Pyramids at sunrise. A symbolic moment, when the ancient pyramids poked through the morning city mist, beautifully juxtaposing the solar-powered airplane that flew above it.
9. A team moment, taxiing the airplane on the Egyptian tarmac
For the final leg, we had to escort Bertrand to its take off position at Cairo airport as it was quite far from the hangar... A moment of cohesion filled with emotions for the whole team who walked hours, taking turns to help taxi the airplane in the darkness of the night.
10. The final landing in Abu Dhabi
We couldn’t leave the last landing of our crazy adventure out of the list. Under the watchful gaze of the lit-up mosque, Bertrand touched down where André had taken off a year and a half ago. We were relieved, nostalgic, ecstatic, (tired) all at the same time. Completing the first round-the-world solar flight in history doesn’t happen every day!
Thirteen years ago, I took up the challenge of transforming a vision, which the aviation industry considered impossible, into a reality: designing and building a solar airplane which could fly forever. The goal was to fly this airplane with unlimited autonomy around the world, a dream that we successfully completed with Bertrand Piccard almost five months ago when Solar Impulse 2 landed back in Abu Dhabi on 26 July after circumnavigating the globe with no fuel, powered only by the energy of the sun.
What made it feasible? Developing the right mindset made it possible to push back not only the limits of technology, but my own human and personal boundaries as well. To overcome obstacles, the most important was to always keep my own level of energy very high, especially in tough moments, and there were many! The following 8 principles were undoubtedly key factors for our success, and ones I would recommend applying:
1. Make sure your vision is crisp, easy to communicate and understandable. It should be clear enough that you should never have to repeat it!.
When Bertrand Piccard and I set about finding partners and building a team at the beginning, we didn’t know which path to choose to realize our vision. Nor did we have a clue what the airplane would look like or how the project would evolve. All we knew was that we wanted to fly around the world without a single drop of fuel. That was the vision, and yes it was ambitious, but clear enough as to enable team members, partners and stakeholders to remain totally aligned and focused until reaching our final goal.
2. Team up with somebody to complete your understanding of the world and your set of skills. It’s important that he/she be very different from you as it’s what makes you dissimilar that will create value. But it’s also critical that you share a very solid common ground which will keep you together in difficult times.
Bertrand and I come from different worlds, so most of the time, we have different opinions, ideas and strategies when faced with a question. He’s a psychiatrist and explorer, I’m an engineer and entrepreneur. This allows us to find different solutions from the ones we each come up with. We understood very early on that disagreeing was a great way to create value. In Solar Impulse, each of us contributed what the other part needed. It was like two parts of a puzzle that fitted well together. But differences are also a source of disagreement, miscommunication, misunderstanding and frustration. The important is to have something crucial in common, something to share, something which brings the two parts back together. In our case, Solar impulse is a life mission, so important to both of us that it always helped to solve our partnership issues.
3. Aim for a high performance team by combining empowerment and challenges. By challenging your team, your will enlarge their territory of knowledge, skills and confidence.
You can only succeed if you can get the best out of your team. We can all push our own limits when we accomplish ourselves. It’s a question of becoming owners of what we are responsible for and what we are doing. That’s what I call empowerment. By giving your team members the possibility to grow, to take decisions, by asking them to bring solutions and not problems, you will teach them responsibility and you will make them become owners of their world. Can there be any better motivation?
Is this enough? No. Make sure you challenge them regularly. Come with new questions, new challenges, push their limits in terms of skills and attitude, slowly expand their territory. Find the right balance between building up their confidence level through success and recognition and bringing them regularly outside their comfort zone.
4. Coach in calm weather and lead in storms.
When trying to make the impossible possible, the path can be smooth until the next big obstacle comes along. Use these “calm” moments to build up your team. Do however be ready for the tough ride when the crisis comes as your team will need you to lead them through the storm.
That is what I had to do during my flight from Japan to Hawaii. What I experienced then as a pilot was a mirror of my life as an entrepreneur. A few hours following the takeoff from Nagoya, I detected a failure in the system supervising the airplane while I rest, and all my engineers told me to return to Japan to fix the problem. How could I fly alone, for 5 days and nights non-stop, without this supervision and alarm system? But it was the first time the weather over the Pacific was extremely favorable after 2 months of waiting and delaying our departure. So I looked at the situation differently, found that the overall mission risk was reasonable, knowing that I would be able to cope with this deficiency. I decided to continue. It was a very difficult decision, knowing that it would potentially split the team and create distrust among them, but I deeply felt that it was the right moment. So I followed through with my flight!
5. Build opposite forces in your team to avoid complacency and missing your goals.
When you are successful in your endeavors, it’s difficult to remember not to take everything for granted and not to become complacent. In aviation, the risk materializes itself in a grave way: an accident and potentially the death of the pilot. It’s not about losing money; it’s about losing a life. What we really wanted to do was to avoid groupthink, by giving everyone the right to express bad feelings about a situation or a decision. But that was not enough. Which is why we decided to build a separate team to constantly review our decisions before each flight. A team not involved in the day to day operations, a team untouched by the pressure to succeed.
6. Be sure you welcome the unexpected and the change.
Endeavors which try to build something revolutionary are a constant challenge. Trying to do something disruptive is like a journey into the unknown. On one side you need plans and strategies to align your efforts, on the other side you know that everything will turn out to be different and that you will have to adapt. Be ready for change, go even further, welcome change to ensure that at all times, you maintain a positive view about a given situation. Change is a source of opportunities!
7. Look at obstacles like opportunities. When faced with a problem, spend enough time to understand what this new situation will bring you.
In 2012, as the engineers in Dübendorf, Switzerland, were performing load tests on Si2’s spar - the main structural part of the wing, similar to the backbone of the human body -, it literally exploded! It was a huge shock for the entire team. This was going to cost us at least a year of financing, assuming that the team could quickly assess the reasons of the failure. The entire project was at risk financially, technologically and psychologically as our level of confidence had been shaken. But this was a transformative moment for me, when I moved from explorer to leader: instead of thinking that we lost a year to rebuild the failed part, I began to say we had gained a year. Suddenly we had one more year available until we could start the flight around the world. So I decided to bring our first airplane, Solar Impulse 1, to the US, to fly from coast to coast starting in California. This was something Bertrand and I had always wanted to do but not known how! It led us to meet Google’s founders who decided to become partners of the project, covering part of our financial needs but also providing tremendous support in terms of online communication. This new perspective freed the team from only considering how to solve the obstacle to now considering how to develop the opportunity. It’s clear today that without this flight across America it would have been difficult to be fully ready at the start of the flight around the world.
8. Prepare for the worst case scenario to free your mind from anxiety and negative feelings.
Three years ago I was flying from Washington DC to New York with Solar Impulse 1. At midday, as I was flying over the ocean, a media helicopter came close to me to take some pictures. He immediately told me I was losing part of the undercover of the wing. He took some pictures, which he sent to our Mission Control Center. The first feedback I got from my engineers was that they were astonished that the wing had not disintegrated yet! You can imagine the shock I felt at the moment. Immediately, I started to prepare for bail out and went through all the steps I would have to do until landing in the water with my parachute. How to jettison the canopy, how to get out of the airplane, which position to take in free fall, where to find the grip to open the parachute, how to enter the water, etc. And I felt that I should be able to do it with the training I had done during the previous months. But I also I told myself: “You won’t get the chance to bail out over the Atlantic Ocean every day, so if happens today, you better enjoy it!” It would be another life experience! This perspective completely relaxed me, as I knew I could handle the worst case scenario in a safe way. From that moment on I was able stay focused and calm during the 9 remaining hours of flight before safely landing at JFK.
Solar Impulse celebrates the end of the round-the-world adventure
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne – on the shores of Lake Geneva in French-speaking Switzerland – also known as EPFL, is a symbolic place to mark the end point of our project as it is where it was officially launched in 2003, following Bertrand’s vision of an airplane of perpetual endurance in 1999 and the feasibility study led by André in 2002.
To make sure that we could celebrate with everyone, we organised two separate gatherings in the same day: one with the students from the EPFL and supporters in the afternoon; another with the team, our partners (as they sure were supportive!) and long-term friends of the project in the evening. Both were the occasion to relive the adventure once again by viewing the new French documentary entitled “Solar Impulse - L'impossible tour du monde.”
“This adventure has really been a team effort. There are two words that sum up how I feel about what we all lived together: trust and interdependence,” said André to the team. “When leaving Japan, we weren’t all aligned on the right strategy to adopt. It took six months to rebuild that trust and the spirit within the team, so in that sense our pause in Hawaii was a blessing in disguise. But we did it and everyone in this team has been an important link in this interdependent chain that has held this mission together during more than 13 years.”
“When we landed in Abu Dhabi last July, I felt that our flight around the world wasn’t quite over as we would have the team celebration in Monaco. It turns out there were other events that followed over the past months, such as the arrival of Si2 back in Switzerland, and the presentation of the movie with the partners, the team and friends,” emphasized Bertrand. “Tonight however, I feel like it might be over, but in fact it is only the end of the beginning. A mix between nostalgia and hope, because everything we did had a purpose and that purpose continues beyond this adventure.”
During the evening event, the World Air Sports Federation (FAI) also handed out certificates, not only to Bertrand and André for their record breaking achievements, but to the entire Solar Impulse team to pay tribute to their involvement in the pioneering round-the-world journey. In honor of his/her contribution, every member received a record for accomplishing the first ever round-the-world solar flight. A nice surprise acknowledging the immense dedication and perseverance of the team!
In addition Bertrand received a record of both distance and altitude for the “electric engine” category for his historic transatlantic crossing from New York to Seville. Indeed, one should not forget that Si2 is a solar powered airplane, but with electric engines! Added to the already listed records, such as the ones that André received last year for duration and distance over the Pacific in the “solar airplane” category, and together with the team achievements, this bring the total number of FAI records to 23 for the entire round-the-world journey!
But while 2016 is coming to an end and the final curtain is falling on the round-the-world adventure, there are still many exciting projects in the pipeline for 2017, such as solidifying the bases of the first of its kind World Alliance for Clean Technologies that was launched in Marrakesh during COP22 and continuing to work on new disruptive and innovative projects, such as unmanned and high endurance electric aircrafts.
So stay tuned to find out what’s next for Solar Impulse
LIVE on #Periscope: Last time the team is together https://t.co/gDvyIZWdjf
Piccard rolls second phase in support of clean tech
The Solar Impulse Foundation launched the World Alliance for Clean Technologies on November 11, 2016 during COP22, in Marrakech, as a legacy to the first-ever solar flight around the our planet. Its objective is to unite the main actors in the field of clean technologies, in order to create synergies, promote profitable solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental and health challenges, and give credible advice to governments to encourage them to implement them.
It was back on July 26, 2016 that first solar flight around the world landed in Abu Dhabi after flying 40,000 Km without fuel, accomplished by Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg. Just four month later the Solar Impulse Foundation is launching, at COP22, the World Alliance for Clean Technologies – a second phase in the realization of Piccard’s vision that clean technologies can accomplish impossible goals and offer tangible solutions to solve many of the problems currently facing our society, as well as help to reach the goals of the Climate Action Agenda.
Abu Dhabi, UAE, July 26th 2016: Solar Impulse landing after completing first solar ever flight around the world @Solar Impulse Foundation Revillard rezo ch
The Alliance’s mission is to globally advance the cause of clean technologies, which it defines as “any practical solution that allows to bridge the gap between ecology and economy. They are not limited to the production of renewable energy, but encompass technologies, systems, know-hows or processes that protect the environment, improve health, increase energy efficiency or save natural resources, while creating jobs, generating profit and sustaining growth“.
“We need to embrace clean technologies, not because they are ‘eco-logical,’ but because they are ‘logical,’” said Bertrand Piccard, Chairman of the Solar Impulse Foundation. “Even if climate change didn’t exist, energy efficient technologies would make sense to create jobs, generate profit and boost economic development, while also reducing CO2 emissions and protecting natural resources.”
Until now, there was no such organization, gathering the clean technologies stakeholders around the world; hence the Alliance will bring together start-ups, companies, institutions and organizations producing, implementing or supporting the use of clean technologies. Together, the members will share experiences and create synergies in order to improve the overall value chain and demonstrate concrete solutions to support governments, corporations and institutions in reaching their environmental and health targets, advising them depending on their specific situation.
Commenting on the launch of the Alliance, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “The Solar Impulse flight showed the world that it is possible to push the limits of technology in order to build the foundation for a sustainable future. By harnessing this and other innovative technologies, we can achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.”
“Initiatives like the World Alliance for Clean Technologies are exactly what we need to further enable investors, governments, cities and citizens to harvest the rich variety of clean technologies that already exist or are under development,” added Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Patricia Espinosa, who was present at the launch. “We need the best and brightest minds – from the North and the South – to deliver clean technologies that can collectively accomplish the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement and all the Sustainable Development Goals to catalyze a healthy and prosperous future for all.”
Richard Northcote, Chief Sustainability Officer at Covestro, shared: “We are delighted to continue our relationship with Solar Impulse though the World Alliance for Clean Technologies. Our contribution to the Solar Impulse project proved that we have the technology to make the world a brighter place and through this alliance we intend to accelerate the implementation of these technologies to tackle the challenges society faces while generating business growth.”
Powerful collaborative innovation is the key
“The success of Solar Impulse has proven to the world how powerful collaborative innovation between visionary entrepreneurs and companies that believe in science and research can be to deliver technological breakthroughs. This is just the beginning of what open collaboration and innovation can do to combat climate change,” concluded Jean-Pierre Clamadieu, CEO of Solvay, Solar Impulse’s first partner.
The Solar Impulse Foundation offers to the Alliance its administrative support, as well as the media, political and institutional relations developed during the round the world solar flight. The Alliance is funded thanks to partners such as Covestro, Solvay and Nestlé, among others, as well as private donors.
As Bertrand Piccard said upon the final landing in Abu Dhabi “If an airplane can fly around the world without a drop fuel, clean technologies can undoubtedly be implemented on the ground to make a cleaner, more efficient and richer world.”
Today’s Quote
“Solar power is the last energy resource that isn’t owned yet – nobody taxes the sun yet.” Bonnie Raitt
World Alliance for Clean Technologies unveiled by Solar Impulse Foundation during COP22 in Marrakech Piccard rolls second phase in support of clean tech The Solar Impulse Foundation launched the World Alliance for Clean Technologies on November 11, 2016 during…
New Post has been published on http://www.bestviralfeed.com/solar-powered-plane-lands-in-california-after-pacific-crossing/
Solar-powered plane lands in California after Pacific crossing
MOUNTAIN VIEW (AFP) – Solar Impulse 2, an experimental plane flying around the world without consuming a drop of fuel, has landed in California, one leg closer to completing its trailblazing trip.
“The Pacific is done, my friend. I love it, but it s done,” said clearly relieved Swiss adventurer Bertrand Piccard, who piloted the craft from Hawaii to California, just before landing.
“It s great to be in California, the land of pioneers,” he said once on the ground, with Google co-founder and alternative energy enthusiast Sergey Brin on hand.
“Innovation and pioneering must continue. The clean tech revolution has to keep moving forward.”
Piccard, a 58-year-old doctor by training, said that enduring the 62-hour stretch between Hawaii and the Silicon Valley town of Mountain View was one of the “most amazing” experiences of his life.
“I bet that in 10 years, electric airplanes will be transporting up to 50 people. This will happen,” he added.
“This is not science fiction. It is real,” Piccard said.
The arrival at Moffett Airfield southeast of San Francisco, marked the completion of the ninth of 13 legs in a journey that began last year in the United Arab Emirates.
Piccard, who has been alternating the long solo flights with teammate Andre Borschberg, will now hand over to his teammate who will pilot Solar Impulse across the United States and to New York.
The mission aims to promote the use of renewable energy, with an aircraft powered by 17,000 solar cells.
The plane s wingspan is wider than that of a jumbo jet but its weight is roughly the same as a car s.
Solar Impulse 2 was grounded in July last year when its batteries suffered problems halfway through its 21,700-mile (35,000-kilometer) circumnavigation.
The crew took several months to repair the damage from high tropical temperatures during the first Pacific stage, a 4,000-mile flight between Japan and Hawaii.
The aircraft was flown on that leg by Borschberg, whose 118-hour journey smashed the previous record of 76 hours and 45 minutes set by US adventurer Steve Fossett in 2006.
Born in Zurich, Borschberg is no stranger to adventure — 15 years ago he narrowly escaped an avalanche, and then in 2013 he was involved in a helicopter crash that left him with minor injuries.
The 63-year-old took catnaps of only 20 minutes at a time to maintain control of the pioneering plane during his arduous flight from Japan, in what his team described as “difficult” conditions.
The Pacific crossing is the most dangerous due to a lack of landing sites in the event of an emergency.
Traveling at altitudes of more than 9,000 meters (29,500 feet), Borschberg at times had to use oxygen tanks to breathe and experienced huge swings in temperature throughout.
Alone throughout and utterly self-reliant in the unpressurized cockpit, he was equipped with a parachute and life raft in case he needed to ditch in the Pacific
Piccard said Saturday that he could not sleep more than 20 minutes at a time “because after 20 minutes you have to wake up and control everything and if everything goes well then you can go back to sleep.”
The solar-powered plane, which stores energy in batteries for when the sun is not shining, will stop in New York before a transatlantic flight to Europe. From there the pilots plan to make their way back to the point of departure in Abu Dhabi.
A Swiss solar prize for Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg
Our pilots – Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg – were rewarded the World Solar Prize by the Swiss Solar Agency for successfully making their crazy dream of flying around the world with no fuel powered only by the energy of the sun a reality, thereby attracting “unmatched international attention” to renewable forms of energy.
“Solar Impulse 2 sparked unique, unmatched international attention for renewable energies, solar energy and clean technologies,” said the Swiss Solar Agency in a statement. Already in 2010, our pilots had won the agency’s Swiss and European prizes.
The prize was one of 14 Swiss Solar Awards being presented yesterday at the olma agricultural fair in St Gallen. Every year, the Swiss Solar Agency recognizes a selection of exemplary buildings, institutions and people for their contributions to solar energy. However, it grants the so-called World Solar Prize only occasionally, the previous “world” prize went to British architect Norman Foster in 2005.
Born in Switzerland, Solar Impulse’s aim was not only to design and build a solar airplane, but to develop a symbol which would attractively promote a pioneering and innovative spirit in the field of renewable energy and clean technologies. This award is therefore a very nice acknowledgment for Bertrand, André and the team!
