India will develop solar-powered UAVs
22 Aug 2011
New Delhi: India is planning to develop a solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) which will remain airborne and on surveillance duty for at least a month in all weather conditions. The UAV will be capable of providing real-time data of the area under surveillance through a secure data link, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) officials said.
"We are looking forward to develop solar-powered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a long range and endurance capability as we plan to diversify our expertise in UAV technology," DRDO spokesperson Ravi Gupta has been quoted as saying.
The UAV will endure long-range sorties ranging up to a month in all weather conditions and will have specially-designed solar panels to keep it airborne even in nights and cloudy weather conditions with the help of power generated and saved during the day.
The medium altitude long endurance (MALE) 'Rustom-1' UAV, developed by the DRDO can, reportedly, remain airborne for 24 to 36 hours, even as the tactical army-deployed 'Nishant' can remain airborne for nearly five hours.
All these UAVs carry a variety of sensors which can peer deep into enemy territory for surveillance and reconnaissance purposes.
