# Nanolight

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thumb|upright=1.14|A Nanolight Trike (Fly Products Trike Delta)

A '''nanolight''' is an [Australian](/source/Australia) class of [ultralight](/source/ultralight) powered [aircraft](/source/aircraft). It was originally defined as a [powered hang glider](/source/powered_hang_glider) with an empty weight, including both wing and power system, of less than {{convert|70|kg|lb|0|abbr=on}}. A nanolight may be launched on foot or using a wheeled undercarriage.<ref name="Aerial">{{Cite web|url = http://www.aerialpursuits.com/nanolites/nano_FAQ.htm|title = Nanolight Trike FAQ|accessdate = 29 October 2010|last = Raptor Designs Pty Ltd|authorlink = |date=December 2004 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090914185504/http://www.aerialpursuits.com/nanolites/nano_FAQ.htm|archive-date= 14 September 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Nanolights are somewhat slower than purpose-built microlights. Because they are so light, they are often used for thermal soaring. The engine is used to launch the aircraft to a safe altitude and to find a thermal. It is then turned off and the pilot uses thermal lift alone to gain altitude.<ref name="Aerial"/>

Because nanolights have good thermal performance, but low cruise speeds, this class of aircraft is most often flown by hang glider pilots who use them for [soaring flights](/source/Lift_(soaring)), rather than ultralight pilots using them to fly distances.<ref name="Aerial"/>

== See also ==
*[Index of aviation articles](/source/Index_of_aviation_articles)
*[Rogallo wing](/source/Rogallo_wing)
*[Rotor kite](/source/Rotor_kite)
*[Homebuilt aircraft](/source/Homebuilt_aircraft)

== References ==
{{commons category|Nanolight}}
{{Reflist}}

Category:Ultralight trikes

{{aviation-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Nanolight](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanolight) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanolight?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.