Sunlight-Powered Flight: Battery-Free Atmospheric Explorers
2025-08-16
Harvard researchers have designed a battery-free, miniature flying device that uses sunlight for propulsion, allowing it to levitate in the upper atmosphere. The device consists of two ultrathin layers of aluminum oxide, generating lift through a thermal difference created by sunlight and a clever hole design, acting like a miniature 'solar-powered helicopter'. This technology promises to explore understudied regions of Earth's atmosphere, even the edge of space, opening new avenues for atmospheric science research.