Flying in Freezing temps

[Hubisz]

I just got my Solo this past summer. I have not flown in temps below freezing. I'd like to fly today and the temp is not supposed to be above 33°. Has anyone had bad experiences in cold temps? Or am I good to go?
Thanks for any input

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

It will fly just fine. In fact you'll probably notice a sense of having more power. It will be more responsive and faster. The cold air is more dense, so the props have more air to bite into. That said, the cold will reduce the capacity of your battery, so keep that in mind. Some phones/tablets don't take well to the cold either.

 

[Hubisz]

Thanks for the reply, I'll be flying shortly

 

[Stealth]

It will fly just fine. In fact you'll probably notice a sense of having more power. It will be more responsive and faster. The cold air is more dense, so the props have more air to bite into. That said, the cold will reduce the capacity of your battery, so keep that in mind. Some phones/tablets don't take well to the cold either.

I agree with you. I have flown at 0o C at 2300 m. ASL, calm whether, frozen lakes, good landscape. Had no problems with Solo, but decided to land @ 30% battery. Flight time was around 10 min. (I usually land @20% battery with flight time around 13 min - Solo, GoPro and gimbal).

 

[Marich]

Keep your batteries warm. It seems obvious, but pack your Solo and gear into your backseat instead of your trunk. If you're going to trek any distance while outside - something I actually do quite a bit - put spare batteries inside your coat.
It really does make a big difference. I've been making aerial videos in my Village since it was possible to strap a camera to an RC plane (heck, even before that - I've put cameras into everything from free-flight gas planes to sailplanes launched with a histart to humongous hot air balloons).
Off topic here, but it's seriously amazing to think back over the years at what we've considered small or "portable" cameras. Anyone remember Kodak "Disc" cameras? Those were cheap, and pretty much considered the smallest, lightest photo systems available. Horrible picture quality - but you'd be amazed how many of them actually became airborne!

 

[healthyfatboy]

eDVR 5-in-1 is what I carried and modified CVS cameras were the bees knees just 10 years ago. Lots have changed since then.

 

[Marich]

eDVR 5-in-1 is what I carried and modified CVS cameras were the bees knees just 10 years ago. Lots have changed since then.

Oh man, I remember those 5 in 1 cameras with great glee - whenever someone stopped to watch me fly they were always more amazed by the camera than the aircraft.

 

[death star]

I just got my Solo this past summer. I have not flown in temps below freezing. I'd like to fly today and the temp is not supposed to be above 33°. Has anyone had bad experiences in cold temps? Or am I good to go?
Thanks for any input

 

[death star]

Cold air is less dense (humidity) than warm air...its why aircraft fly at altitude. Less wind resistance. Am i missing something here.

 

[Maddog]

Cold air is less dense (humidity) than warm air...its why aircraft fly at altitude. Less wind resistance. Am i missing something here.

Cold air has more molecules per unit of volume. (Cold molecules move less, allowing more room for others). Thus more dense.
Jet powered aircraft fly at higher altitudes because jet engines are more efficient there, thus burn less fuel.
Much bigger consideration than wind resistance.

 

[Maddog]

Keep your batteries warm. It seems obvious, but pack your Solo and gear into your backseat instead of your trunk. If you're going to trek any distance while outside - something I actually do quite a bit - put spare batteries inside your coat.
It really does make a big difference. I've been making aerial videos in my Village since it was possible to strap a camera to an RC plane (heck, even before that - I've put cameras into everything from free-flight gas planes to sailplanes launched with a histart to humongous hot air balloons).
Off topic here, but it's seriously amazing to think back over the years at what we've considered small or "portable" cameras. Anyone remember Kodak "Disc" cameras? Those were cheap, and pretty much considered the smallest, lightest photo systems available. Horrible picture quality - but you'd be amazed how many of them actually became airborne!

Where is your village located?

 

[Pedals2Paddles]

Cold air is less dense (humidity) than warm air...its why aircraft fly at altitude. Less wind resistance. Am i missing something here.

That is incorrect. Air density is not the same thing as humidity. Air density increases as temperature decreases. And density also decreases as altitude increases.

 

[User Name]

I might have to take a refresher course in thermal dynamics....did they issue some revised laws. Could of sworn the attic Artic use to be classified as a desert..

From Wikipedia (I know, I know, but for this type of thing, it's usually accurate):

"Humid air is less dense than dry air because a molecule of water (M ≈ 18 u) is less massive than either a molecule of nitrogen (M ≈ 28) or a molecule of oxygen (M ≈ 32)"

Now, the increased power of cold, dry air is most pronounced when talking of internal combustion engines, since the more O2 the engine can work with, the more power it can generate. I remember trying to climb to 10,000 feet in my father's Cessna 150 as a kid one hot, humid summer day. Wasn't going to happen, I don't think we got much over 8,000 before giving up. On a winter day, no problem at all.

How much this effects electric aircraft is up for debate, as plowing the props through the denser air takes more power, with the power system not benefiting from it. But given that, like most quadcopters, the Solo is fairly over powered, my money would be on greater performance at the cost of flight duration.

But specifically for the density question, cold, dry air is more dense than hot humid air.

 

[pyrate]

Google Todd Harper
flies in the cold all the time

 

[healthyfatboy]

It's called density altitude. Good 5 minute reading for any pilot. We record it on all flights we go on for work, granted I don't worry about it as much at home but it's still a very important consideration when you go fly something. Basically, it's the exact opposite of what you mentioned. Colder air is more dense than hot air. Humidity doesn't really matter. However, you have to take into consideration pressure as well and even though it's cold up high, there's less pressure so you have to adjust and compensate as needed. All explained in the link.
Density Altitude - AOPA

 

[clackey]

Just a friendly reminder to all - keep it on topic and friendly. Ok to disagree but it must be thoughtful and respectful.

Community Guidelines

 

[cameraguy]

You know, I did nothing wrong with my post. It had a little humor in it. The humor was not aimed at anyone, and it was meant to break a little of the tension that was building up in the thread.

Thanks for deleting it, and offending me personally.

 

[clackey]

I deleted all the posts. Your post didn't make much sense hanging out there on its own without the rest.

C.

 

[Lon Denard]

And this is why I avoid forums...

I, for one, would like to thank those that answered the question directly because I live in Michigan and had the same concerns.

 

[Kent]

Don't quit this forum because of a small "gust of wind".... Great info here! Forecast is for 4-8 inches today in Minnesota and am looking forward to getting into the air before it starts coming down. Snowy scenes are great. Now we can get them from the air. How cool is that? Just bought my second Solo and look to fly these birds as long as they continue to take off.