Sun shines on latest technology

May 28 2009 by Andrew Mernin, The Journal

SCIENTISTS in America are taking national security to new levels in our modern, eco-conscious world by marrying the ability to produce an unmanned surveillance plane with the latest renewable energy technology.

A company called Bye Aerospace, based in Colorado, is developing a spy-plane that will run on sunlight alone in a move that meets President Barack Obama’s twin agendas of keeping the US borders safe while placing greater emphasis on a greener future.

Bye Aerospace’s aircraft, dubbed the Silent Sentinel, will use power generated by photovoltaic technology developed by Ascent Solar Technologies.

The thin-film modules will put the spy-plane on the front line of military and civilian reconnaissance.

This is an area that the North East is increasingly excited by as we look to twin expertise in renewable energy spurred on by the New & Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC) in Blyth with our work to support the evolving expertise in the security sector.

Security innovation was the theme for the recent CONNECT North East conference, sponsored by NETPark Net and held in Sedgefield, which acted as a platform for innovative technology start up companies to find funding partners.

The concept behind the CONNECT conference also came from our friends over the water with the original organisation being founded in 1985 in San Diego, California, in response to a serious economic downturn.

Building on the success of the concept, networking organisation Bridge Club brought it to the North East.

It was a resounding success, attracting more than 150 delegates, investors from across the country and 10 fledgling technology companies as well as representatives from the Ministry of Defence and public and private companies.

A stone’s throw from where the conference was held in Sedgefield is one of CONNECT North East’s founding partners NETPark, one of the fastest growing science and technology parks in the UK.

So with all this innovation and scientific development within the region, not least our growing expertise in photovoltaics, we could soon be giving our American counterparts a run for their money by cohesively marrying the renewable energy industry with security innovation to develop technologies that offer long endurance, are cost effective to run and less harmful to the planet.