There are not many fields tor professions left on the planet that are still yet to go green, but spying might be something that missed being swept away by the green wave. It is not all that surprising too as it probably always is shrouded in secrecy and operates in darkness. But now even the famed 007 and others like him might not have much of an option but to go green. That is not so much because they care but the fact that green technology is both compact and efficient. Now the spying masters and the secret men would surely love that!
Scientists from Berlin’s Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Micro-integration IZM and the Technical University of Berlin have come up with lightweight fuel cells which could be used in the future for espionage. To increase the output of fuel cells, manufacturers usually stack several layers of them made of metal atop each other. Doing so makes the fuel cell system quite heavy. This newly developed stack of fuel cells use very thin, planar fuel cells separated by plastic spacers. The total weight of the power source is a mere 30 grams and, with an output of 12 W, can power a small 20cm spy helicopter. So Bond may not take flight with this, but his eyes and ears can go further!
The helicopter could be used for rescue operations, monitoring traffic, or observing hazardous locations. So it is not only limited for the spying and espionage. A fuel cell needs air supply, but the rotors of the helicopter can provide enough air needed to pass through the integrated air vents, eliminating the need for air pumps. They seem to have everything sorted out for now and hopefully this will make it to the fancy toy list of Daniel Craig in his next Bond outing!
