Look! Up in the sky!
 

It's a hybrid airplane: Once a Joke, Battery-Powered Airplanes Are Nearing Reality | MIT Technology Review

Very cool!

Airport PA says "...ALL FLIGHTS HAVE BEEN CANCELLED DUE TO CLOUDY WEATHER..."

Did it say that it was solar?

Would it take off under battery or fuel? Quiet airports would be revolutionary!

The article implies, but does not state explicitly if this is a serial hybrid? If so, what details do we know about the ICE portion of the system? What is the capacity of the battery pack, and what is the output of the generator?

All I know about it is in the article. Some of the links are interesting, too.

I do notice one mistake in the article, at the end, about making it possible to eliminate lead from avgas. The real problem is the number of existing aircraft that under FAA regulations can't have their engines modified or replaced with a different engine without going to the great expense of obtaining an STC.

STC = Supplemental Type Certificate from FAA.

Are new private aircraft built with ICEs that can handle lead-free fuel? If so, I'd be surprised that the airports don't offer both fuel types. Admittedly, I'm not all that knowledgeable about private aircraft...

Let's stay down to earth, it's a motorized glider design ...
Those don't need much of an engine anyway.

Generally, yes. Or you can get an STC for many of the the more common models: my Piper Cherokee has one, and runs just fine on premium from the gas station.

Mainly it's a supply & demand thing. Aviation gasoline is a pretty small market, so few refiners produce it, and most airports only sell 100LL (100 octane, low lead). Some of the older warbirds take up to 115/145 octane.