Tag Archives: eric

Solar “Death Ray”: Power of 5000 suns!

The R5800 is my latest and greatest solar creation. Made from an ordinary fiberglass satellite dish, it is covered in about 5800 3/8″ (~1cm) mirror tiles. When properly aligned, it can generate a spot the size of a dime with an intensity of 5000 times normal daylight. This intensity of light is more than enough to melt steel, vaporize aluminum, boil concrete, turn dirt into lava, and obliterate any organic material in an instant. It stands at 5’9″ and is 42″ across. Unfortunately, the R5800 was completely destroyed in a storage shed fire on December 14, 2010. music: “hypnothis” www.incompetech.com provided under creative commons liscence Coming spring of 2011: Sun Runner 3 R23000 (R23K) Area of dish aperture (elliptical)= (pi x 102cm x 73cm)/4 = 5848 sq cm Area of focal point (circular)= pi(0.6cm)^2 = 1.14 sq cm Concentration Power= 5848/1.14 = 5129 then rounded down Output Power Estimate = 560 watts

Solar Electric Powered Flight

Glenn Pew interviews Eric Raymond. Eric has been flying his battery launched solar assisted sailplane since the late ’80s. He knows the road to progress doesn’t come as bolts of lightning in time but through years of small steps. Glenn Pew caught up with Eric to learn about Sunseeker the Solar Impulse project and more… www.glennpew.com