You might not think a wind-powered vehicle could go very fast, but if so, Richard Jenkins’ ‘Greenbird’ just proved you wrong. The ‘Greenbird’ hit a staggering 126.1 miles per hour, breaking the world record and stunning onlookers at Ivenpah Lake in Nevada last weekend.
From Inhabitat:
The Greenbird is a carbon-fiber composite vehicle that is exclusively wind powered, making it essentially an earthbound sailboat. There were challenges involved, since at high speeds the vehicle tends to, well, take off. To counter this problem the vehicle incorporates specific design solutions, such as wings similar to those found in fomula one cars.
So now that he has achieved his first goal, what is next? Well, believe it or not, he will now try to break the record again – only this time, he will do so on ice.
So, how does it work? The Greenbird website explains:
The most basic principle of wind-powered vehicles is harnessing and optimising airflow. Just as airflow over an aircraft’s horizontal wing pushes the aircraft up, the flow of air over The Greenbird’s vertical sail pushes the vehicle forward.
The Greenbird utilises a combination of technology, usually found on aircraft and Formula One, to achieve staggering efficiency. Made from carbon composites, the vehicle takes huge forces at top speed, being able to transfer up to one ton of side force into the ground.
A phenomenon called ‘apparent wind’ allows the vehicle to travel faster than the wind. Learn more about it at the Greenbird website, and check out the video of the vehicle in action below.
