A Swiss and His Solar Taxi
Time:4 minutes          Difficulty: ★★
瑞士男子路易斯·帕尔莫正驾驶着“太阳能的士”环游世界，这种“太阳能之旅”的冒险在历史上还是首例。Swiss national Louis Palmer fulfilled a childhood dream when he set off from his home country on July 3, traveling over desert, city and sea in 17 countries by a “solar taxi” to reach UN Climate Change Conference in Bali, Indonesia.

“In 1986, I was a 14-year-old boy, I was dreaming that I can drive around the world,” he said.

“Then it came to my mind, how can I travel around the world and enjoy the beauty of this world with a car that is polluting the world? Then I thought the perfect car would be a solar car.”

His car, which has become a major attraction at the gates of the summit of some 188 nations, was built in three years with scientific help from 4 universities and 15 Swiss companies.

The car pulls a trailer with six square meters of solar panels which soak up the sun. The electricity is fed into the battery which powers the car, and it can run for up to 100 kilometers a day.

“It’s the first time in history that a car is driving around the world without a single drop of petrol,” said Palmer proudly.

His epic solar journey is not his first adventure — he crossed Africa on a bicycle and North America in a light aircraft.

So far, Palmer has gone by land through Europe and the Middle East, then by sea to India and on to Indonesia. After traveling much of Asia, Australia, North America and Africa, he will return to Switzerland to try and win over support for the commercial possibilities of solar cars.

For the moment, he has his hands full, with more curious customers waiting to take a ride in his unique automobile which, he said, “works like a Swiss clock.”

Help: soak up 采集

责任编辑:yingyubao