Getting from place to place can be a life and death prospect. Transportation in the modern era has so transformed our lives, to the extent that we take for granted how it can also save our lives. In the developed world, we simply dial 911 and emergency services arrive quickly, sometimes in minutes. But consider what technologies that timeliness requires; roads, vehicles, and/or aircraft. Unfortunately for many, such equipment is too expensive and will remain so for the foreseeable future.
But there is a new twist on an old idea coming to fruition: solar-electric airships. Solar Ship Inc. is a Toronto, Canada-based aerospace firm with a vision of what could be a life-saving solution to the transportation woes of this world, especially for the …show more content…
That’s one in seven people on the planet. It would never occur to us here in the U.S. that a woman could die in child birth for the simple lack of viable transport. Mind you, I’m not referring to an ambulance that’s minutes late, or even hours late, but days late. Or, more often, there is no such vehicle at all. This is the plight of millions of woman, and all people in need of critical care and supplies, every year; from sub-Saharan Africa, to South East Asia, to South America, to the less developed island nations of the …show more content…
This adherence to age old fears surrounding the use of hydrogen is unjustified in light of modern design realities and materials. All the above described advantages of solar-electric airships will be even further enhanced by future designs that will safely use hydrogen gas at a fraction of the cost of helium.
We now know that the hydrogen gas used was not the cause of the Hindenburg disaster. Bad design and old technology was at fault. Hydrogen is now safely being used in sport balloons in the U.S. and Germany, using modern envelope materials like Heptax. But more people need to be educated on the subject. A giant swastika and ball of flames is a very compelling visual to overcome, however misinformed the subsequent fears. The airship and blimp industry has labored with this setback for decades. Time for a new narrative.
Today’s airships, including the hybrids like the Solar Ship, will overcome the stigma of past failings with modern design and materials. The future is bright for lighter than air transportation and its derivatives. There’s a current renaissance in airship design which will contribute to their proliferation in future. And economies of scale will bring the costs of production down even further, allowing unimaginably wide adoption of this new/old form of
But there is a new twist on an old idea coming to fruition: solar-electric airships. Solar Ship Inc. is a Toronto, Canada-based aerospace firm with a vision of what could be a life-saving solution to the transportation woes of this world, especially for the …show more content…
That’s one in seven people on the planet. It would never occur to us here in the U.S. that a woman could die in child birth for the simple lack of viable transport. Mind you, I’m not referring to an ambulance that’s minutes late, or even hours late, but days late. Or, more often, there is no such vehicle at all. This is the plight of millions of woman, and all people in need of critical care and supplies, every year; from sub-Saharan Africa, to South East Asia, to South America, to the less developed island nations of the …show more content…
This adherence to age old fears surrounding the use of hydrogen is unjustified in light of modern design realities and materials. All the above described advantages of solar-electric airships will be even further enhanced by future designs that will safely use hydrogen gas at a fraction of the cost of helium.
We now know that the hydrogen gas used was not the cause of the Hindenburg disaster. Bad design and old technology was at fault. Hydrogen is now safely being used in sport balloons in the U.S. and Germany, using modern envelope materials like Heptax. But more people need to be educated on the subject. A giant swastika and ball of flames is a very compelling visual to overcome, however misinformed the subsequent fears. The airship and blimp industry has labored with this setback for decades. Time for a new narrative.
Today’s airships, including the hybrids like the Solar Ship, will overcome the stigma of past failings with modern design and materials. The future is bright for lighter than air transportation and its derivatives. There’s a current renaissance in airship design which will contribute to their proliferation in future. And economies of scale will bring the costs of production down even further, allowing unimaginably wide adoption of this new/old form of