When you are vlogging and blogging from 20,000 feet, the weight of your solar panels is of utmost importance. The Chasing Glaciers team is using flexible solar panels from Bruton which provide 26 watts of power, weigh just 28 ounces, and are easily folded and stored. These panels have been instrumental in keeping the team safe and powering the multimedia equipment that is used to tell their story.

Flexible solar panels provide hikers and others off the grid with portable power for mobile phones, laptops or cameras and have come a long way in recent years in reducing their weight while increasing their power density. Nanotechnology and new manufacturing techniques are making it possible to stay connected no matter where in the world you are, even if it is in the remote Karakoram mountains.

Thin film solar panels are now being incorporated into roofing material as well as woven into fabric so that they can be integrated into backpacks, tents and even clothes.

Here are some of the leading companies developing flexible solar panels:

Brunton
Iowa Thin Film Technologies
Konarka
United Solar Ovonic
Voltaic Systems

Read more portable solar panel articles (by me) from Wired: Solar to Keep Army on the Go
Raise the Roof: Power Source