Pilot takes solar-powered aircraft to stratosphere’s edge at 31,000 feet in record-breaking flight

A solar-powered aircraft called SolarStratos has just rewritten the limits of clean aviation.

On August 12, Swiss explorer Raphael Domjan piloted the featherlight craft to 9,521 meters (31,200 feet), a pending world altitude record for solar-electric planes.

For more than five hours, he climbed and coasted through the thin air above the Alps, dressed not like a weekend pilot, but in a pressure suit more familiar to astronauts.

His record-breaking flight proved that solar aviation isn’t just possible, but heading to greater heights.

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Flying without burning a single drop of fuel

Weighing less than a grand piano, the HB-SXA aircraft looks like a glider but hides futuristic tech under its 82-foot wings.

Over 236 square feet of solar cells feed twin electric motors, while a 20-kWh lithium-ion battery waits in reserve.

On this record-setting day, Domjan leaned almost entirely on sunlight and warm alpine thermals, cruising higher than many private jets.

Best of all, he did this all without burning a single drop of fuel.

At one point, SolarStratos even crossed paths with a conventional jetliner below.

The symbolism was hard to miss: one aircraft guzzling tons of fuel, the other gliding on pure solar power.

Domjan later called it ‘a moment out of time,’ while his team marked the record-breaking flight with a celebratory raclette back on the ground.

Solar-powered aircraft may be the future

Solar flight isn’t new.

In 2016, a solar-powered aircraft called Solar Impulse 2 made a round-the-world journey.

A US-based aerospace company also tested a solar-powered autonomous plane, although it didn’t have any humans on board.

However, SolarStratos brings a leaner and bolder vision, with a plane that’s designed for one pilot, not a full squadron of engineers.

The ultimate mission is to reach the stratosphere, soaring towards 82,000 feet and carrying instruments that could help scientists study climate change.

Domjan himself is no stranger to breaking boundaries.

He previously captained PlanetSolar, the first solar-powered boat to circle the globe.

Now he’s setting his sights skyward at a time when regulators are finally opening doors for cleaner aviation.

The FAA has updated rules to include electric and hydrogen propulsion, and global initiatives are boosting zero-emission aircraft development.

While it’s unclear whether SolarStratos can reach their target of 82,000 feet, Domjan’s record-breaking flight makes it clear that the age of solar-powered flight is coming sooner rather than later.

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