DIY engineer builds a battery-free solar-powered drone — and it flies

YouTuber Luke Maximo Bell successfully built and flew a drone powered entirely by solar energy without any batteries or energy storage. He attached 27 small solar panels directly to a lightweight carbon-fiber drone frame, achieving direct solar-powered flight. Though the drone wobbled in gentle breezes, it demonstrated the feasibility of battery-free solar flight and Bell plans a larger version to attempt the world record for longest flying drone.