Editing Solar energy (section)

==Transport==
{{Main|Solar vehicle|Solar-charged vehicle|Electric boat|Solar balloon|Solar aircraft}}
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|image1=Nuna 7.jpg
|image2=Flea Hop HB-SIA - Solar Impulse.jpg
|caption1=[[Nuna 7|Winner]] of the 2013 [[World Solar Challenge]] in Australia
|caption2=[[Solar aircraft|Solar electric aircraft]]  circumnavigating the globe in 2015
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Development of a solar-powered car has been an engineering goal since the 1980s. The [[World Solar Challenge]] is a biannual solar-powered car race, where teams from universities and enterprises compete over {{convert|3021|km|mi}} across central Australia from [[Darwin, Northern Territory|Darwin]] to [[Adelaide]]. In 1987, when it was founded, the winner's average speed was {{convert|67|km/h|mph}} and by 2007 the winner's average speed had improved to {{convert|90.87|km/h|mph|2}}.<ref>{{cite web|title=The World Solar Challenge – The Background |publisher=Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy Society |url=http://www.anzses.org/files/The%20WORLD%20Solar%20Challenge.pdf |access-date=5 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080719140545/http://www.anzses.org/files/The%20WORLD%20Solar%20Challenge.pdf |archive-date=19 July 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
The [[North American Solar Challenge]] and the planned [[South African Solar Challenge]] are comparable competitions that reflect an international interest in the engineering and development of solar powered vehicles.<ref>{{cite web|title=North American Solar Challenge|publisher=New Resources Group|url=http://americansolarchallenge.org/|access-date=3 July 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=South African Solar Challenge |publisher=Advanced Energy Foundation |url=http://www.solarchallenge.org.za/Default.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 |access-date=3 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080612165911/http://www.solarchallenge.org.za/Default.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1 |archive-date=12 June 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Some vehicles use solar panels for auxiliary power, such as for air conditioning, to keep the interior cool, thus reducing fuel consumption.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/152037|title=Vehicle auxiliary power applications for solar cells|year=1991|pages=187–191|publisher=Institution of Electrical Engineers |access-date=11 October 2008|isbn=0-85296-525-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.systaic.com/press/press-release/systaic-ag-demand-for-car-solar-roofs-skyrockets.html |title=Systaic AG: Demand for Car Solar Roofs Skyrockets |access-date=29 March 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090505004053/http://www.systaic.com/press/press-release/systaic-ag-demand-for-car-solar-roofs-skyrockets.html |archive-date=5 May 2009 }}</ref>

In 1975, the first practical solar boat was constructed in England.<ref>''Electrical Review'' Vol. 201, No. 7, 12 August 1977</ref> By 1995, passenger boats incorporating PV panels began appearing and are now used extensively.<ref>{{cite web|author=Schmidt, Theodor|title=Solar Ships for the new Millennium|publisher=TO Engineering|url=http://www.umwelteinsatz.ch/IBS/solship2.html|access-date=30 September 2007|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009022633/http://www.umwelteinsatz.ch/IBS/solship2.html|archive-date=9 October 2007}}</ref> In 1996, [[Kenichi Horie]] made the first solar-powered crossing of the Pacific Ocean, and the ''Sun21'' catamaran made the first solar-powered crossing of the Atlantic Ocean in the winter of 2006–2007.<ref>{{cite web|title=The sun21 completes the first transatlantic crossing with a solar powered boat|publisher=Transatlantic 21|url=http://www.transatlantic21.org/|access-date=30 September 2007}}</ref> There were plans to circumnavigate the globe in 2010.<ref>{{cite web|title=PlanetSolar, the first solar-powered round-the-world voyage|date=14 August 2015|publisher=PlanetSolar|url=http://ecoenergyproducts.info/solar-energy/first-solar-energy-powered-boat-circumnavigation/|access-date=20 November 2016}}</ref>

In 1974, the unmanned [[AstroFlight Sunrise]] airplane made the first solar flight. On 29 April 1979, the ''[[Solar Riser]]'' made the first flight in a solar-powered, fully controlled, man-carrying flying machine, reaching an altitude of {{convert|40|ft|abbr=on}}. In 1980, the ''[[Gossamer Albatross#Solar-powered variants|Gossamer Penguin]]'' made the first piloted flights powered solely by photovoltaics. This was quickly followed by the ''[[Solar Challenger]]'' which crossed the English Channel in July 1981. In 1990 [[Eric Scott Raymond]] in 21 hops flew from California to North Carolina using solar power.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.evworld.com/article.cfm?storyid=709 |title=EVWORLD FEATURE: Sunseeker Seeks New Records:SUNSEEKER &#124; SAILPLANE &#124; SOARING &#124; GLIDER &#124; ELECTRIC &#124; RAYMOND &#124; PV &#124; PHOTOVOLTAIC &#124; SOLAR &#124; SUN &#124; PLANE &#124; AIRCRAFT &#124; KITTYHAWK &#124; AC PROPULSION |access-date=8 February 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080208120356/http://www.evworld.com/article.cfm?storyid=709 |archive-date=8 February 2008 }}</ref> Developments then turned back to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) with the ''[[NASA Pathfinder|Pathfinder]]'' (1997) and subsequent designs, culminating in the ''[[Helios Prototype|Helios]]'' which set the altitude record for a non-rocket-propelled aircraft at {{convert|29524|m|ft}} in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|title=Solar-Power Research and Dryden|publisher=NASA|url=http://www.nasa.gov/centers/dryden/news/FactSheets/FS-054-DFRC.html|access-date=30 April 2008}}</ref> The ''[[QinetiQ Zephyr|Zephyr]]'', developed by [[BAE Systems]], is the latest in a line of record-breaking solar aircraft, making a 54-hour flight in 2007, and month-long flights were envisioned by 2010.<ref>{{cite web|title=The NASA ERAST HALE UAV Program |publisher=Greg Goebel |url=http://www.vectorsite.net/twuav_15.html#m7 |access-date=30 April 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080210021300/http://www.vectorsite.net/twuav_15.html |archive-date=10 February 2008 |url-status=usurped }}</ref> From March 2015 to July 2016, [[Solar Impulse]], an [[electric aircraft]], successfully circumnavigated the globe. It is a single-seat plane powered by [[solar cell]]s and capable of taking off under its own power. The design allows the aircraft to remain airborne for several days.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.solarimpulse.com/en/documents/hbsia_mission.php?lang=en&group=hbsia |title=HB-SIA Mission |author=Solar Impulse Project |access-date=5 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726022510/http://www.solarimpulse.com/en/documents/hbsia_mission.php?lang=en&group=hbsia |archive-date=26 July 2011 }}</ref>

A [[solar balloon]] is a black balloon that is filled with ordinary air. As sunlight shines on the balloon, the air inside is heated and expands, causing an upward [[buoyancy]] force, much like an artificially heated [[hot air balloon]]. Some solar balloons are large enough for human flight, but usage is generally limited to the toy market as the surface-area to payload-weight ratio is relatively high.<ref>{{cite web|title=Phenomena which affect a solar balloon|publisher=pagesperso-orange.fr|url=http://pagesperso-orange.fr/ballonsolaire/en-theorie1.htm|access-date=19 August 2008}}</ref>

===Squad Solar vehicle===
[[File:Squad Solar Car (Fully Charged 2022).jpg|thumb|[[Squad Solar]]]]
The [[Squad Solar]] is a [[Neighborhood Electric Vehicle]] that has a solar roof and can be plugged into a normal 120 volt outlet to be charged.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://electrek.co/2022/12/06/squad-solar-electric-city-car-coming-to-us-for-6250/ | title=Squad solar electric city car is coming to the US for $6,250 | date=6 December 2022 }}</ref>