VOA慢速英语2015 Solar Powered Plane Starts World Tour

Solar Powered Plane Starts World Tour

A Swiss airplane powered only by energy from the sun left from Abu Dhabi early on March 9. Its creators hope the plane will make the first around-the-world journey without any fuel.

The plane is called Solar Impulse¹ 2. It has one seat and is made from carbon fiber². The plane weighs only as much as a car but its wings are wider than a Boeing 747. The plane’s wings stretch 72 meters across.

Those wings include 17,000 solar units, or cells, that capture³ the sun’s energy. The energy allows the plane to fly day and night.

Two Swiss scientists built the plane. Bertrand Piccard is also an explorer who made the first non-stop flight around the world in a balloon. Andre [need accent! Can’t figure out how to make in this program!] Borschberg is an engineer and trained fighter pilot.

The scientists say they are not trying to change the airplane industry. Instead, they want to show that new energy sources and technologies can achieve what some say is impossible.

"We want to show we can fly day and night in an aircraft without a drop of fuel,'' Mr. Piccard said.

Some parts of the trip will require the pilots to be in the tiny plane for five to six days and nights in a row. So it is good that the pilot's seat is also a toilet.

The plane’s route begins in the United Arab Emirates. The pilots also plan stops in Oman, India, and China. They will cross the Pacific Ocean, stop in the United States, and continue over southern Europe or North Africa. They plan to arrive back in the United Arab Emirates in late July or early August.

Internet viewers can go to the Solar Impulse website to see the plane's location and listen to broadcasts from the pilots. 

Words in This Story

solar – adj. of or relating to the sun

impulse – n. a strong desire to do something. Also, as a technical term, a small amount of energy that moves from one area to another.

1 impulse   

n.（一时的）冲动，冲力，脉冲，神经冲动

参考例句：

• She wrote that letter on impulse.她一时冲动写了这封信。
• I don't know how to resist my impulse.我不知道怎样抑制自己的感情冲动。

2 fiber   

n.纤维，纤维质

参考例句：

• The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。
• The material must be free of fiber clumps.这种材料必须无纤维块。

3 capture   

vt.捕获，俘获；占领，夺得；n.抓住，捕获

参考例句：

• The company is out to capture the European market.这家公司希望占据欧洲市场。
• With the capture of the escaped tiger,everyone felt relieved.逃出来的老虎被捕获后，大家都松了一口气。