AstroFlight Sunrise
AstroFlight · United States · first flew 1974 · reconnaissance aircraft
The AstroFlight Sunrise was an American NASA-sponsored solar-powered unmanned aircraft that achieved the world's first sustained solar-powered flight on 4 November 1974.
Recognition (WEFT)
| W — Wings | High-mounted, straight |
|---|---|
| E — Engines | 1 × electric, nose-mounted |
| F — Fuselage | No fuselage cockpit — skeletal structure with no crew accommodation |
| T — Tail | Conventional |
WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.
Spot it by:
- Unpowered-glider-like high-aspect-ratio wing densely covered with solar cells
- Single electric motor and propeller — the first solar-powered aircraft to fly (1974)
- No fuselage cockpit — skeletal structure with no crew accommodation
Identified by its large-span skeletal wing almost entirely covered in solar cells, absence of any fuselage or crew accommodation, and multiple small propellers distributed along the leading edge.
Specifications
- The AstroFlight Sunrise has a length of 4.36 m (14 ft).
- It has a wingspan of 9.75 m (32 ft).
- Typical crew: 0 (unmanned).
Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.
History
Designed and built by AstroFlight Inc. for NASA, the Sunrise used approximately 4,096 solar cells to power its electric motors with no onboard energy storage. Its historic first flight over Camp Irwin, California demonstrated the viability of solar-electric propulsion for unmanned platforms and inspired decades of subsequent development.
Variants
Sunrise II flew in 1975 with an improved solar cell array; the original Sunrise I was lost in a storm on its second flight attempt.
Where you'll see it
The Sunrise vehicles were research demonstrators only; they laid the conceptual groundwork for later high-altitude long-endurance solar UAV programmes such as Pathfinder and Helios.
Related aircraft
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