Design
It is of carbon-fibre construction, and uses sunlight to charge a lithium sulphur battery during the day, which powers the aircraft at night. The aircraft has been designed for use in observation and communications relay.
The vehicle can circle over a particular area for extended periods. The military uses the vehicle for reconnaissance and communications platforms. Civilian and scientific programmes use it for Earth observation. During the day, Zephyr uses its state-of-the-art solar cells spread across its wings to recharge high-power lithium-sulphur batteries and drive two propellers. At night, the energy stored in the batteries is sufficient to maintain Zephyr in the sky. The batteries are lithium sulphur batteries supplied by Sion, and the first version had a battery capacity of 3kWh.
The second version of the vehicle is bigger and takes five individuals to launch, as opposed to the three previously. The team runs gently into the wind until it lifts out of their hands.
Read more about this topic: Qinetiq Zephyr
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