Bertrand Piccard

Bertrand Piccard is a Swiss psychiatrist, aeronaut, and explorer who completed the first nonstop balloon circumnavigation and co-founded the Solar Impulse solar-aircraft project.

Breitling Orbiter 3: The balloon piloted by Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones on the first nonstop balloon circumnavigation. This was Piccard’s vehicle for the 1999 record-setting journey.
Solar-powered aircraft: An aircraft that uses photovoltaic cells to convert sunlight into electrical power for propulsion and onboard systems. Solar Impulse turns this general aircraft type into a long-distance exploration platform.
Auguste Piccard: A Swiss physicist, inventor, and balloonist who conducted high-altitude and deep-sea research. Bertrand Piccard’s grandfather pioneered the stratospheric ballooning that inspired his explorations.
World Alliance for Efficient Solutions: A platform launched by Bertrand Piccard to identify and promote technologies that improve energy and resource efficiency. It translates the Solar Impulse project’s efficiency message into a broader technology campaign.
First balloon circumnavigation: The first journey around Earth by balloon, completed nonstop by Bertrand Piccard and Brian Jones in 1999. Piccard’s most celebrated aeronautical achievement established a new endurance record.
Photovoltaic effect: The generation of electric voltage or current when light is absorbed by a material. Solar Impulse’s cells converted sunlight into the electricity that powered its motors.
Jacques Piccard: A Swiss oceanographer and deep-sea explorer who descended to the ocean’s deepest known point in 1960. Bertrand Piccard’s father carried the family tradition of exploration into the deep ocean.
Environmental technology: Technology designed to reduce environmental harm or use natural resources more sustainably. Piccard presents clean technologies as practical tools rather than sacrifices in comfort.
Solar Impulse: A project to develop and fly solar-powered aircraft capable of long-duration journeys. Piccard co-founded the project and piloted its landmark around-the-world flight.
Lithium-ion battery: A rechargeable battery that moves lithium ions between electrodes during charging and discharging. Solar Impulse 2 stored daytime solar energy to fly through the night.

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CircumnavigationRelated: The Breitling Orbiter 3 flight extended circumnavigation beyond ships and aircraft.