A solar-powered airplane is set to go on a round-the-world trip that will begin in March, according to CNET.
Solar Impulse 2 will commence its flight on March 1 in Abu Dhabi and land back in the emirate in late July or early Aug., according to the team behind the project.
Weighing 2,300 kilograms, the plane has a 72-meter long wingspan, which is longer than that of a Boeing 747. The wings, along with the plane's fuselage and tail, are fitted with 17,240 solar cells, which gather up 340 kWh per day from solar energy.
This energy powers four 17.5 horsepower electric motors and at the same time charges 633 kilograms of lithium polymer batteries, which are utilized at night. The batteries account for a quarter of the plane's total weight.
With this power, the aircraft can fly at speeds comparable to that of a car, between 36 and 140 kilometers per hour only. Thus, the round-the-world trip will take about 500 hours in total, spread over five months, as compared to a commercial aircraft, which would take only a number of days to cover the same distance.
Pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg will take turns flying the plane. The cockpit is not pressurized so as not to add weight to the aircraft.
The cockpit seats can recline, allowing for a sleeping position, and also work as toilets. With this setup, the pilots can stay in the air for up to five days straight, according to Wired.
The Solar Impulse 2 is an improvement on the Solar Impulse prototype. The first model won eight world records, including the first solar plane to fly between two continents, the longest solar-powered flight, and the first solar plane to fly through the night.
The upgraded version, according to the team, can fly up to five days and five nights straight without fuel.
Below is the trip's itinerary, according to the project's website:
"Muscat, Oman; Ahmedabad and Varanasi, India; Mandalay, Myanmar; and Chongqing and Nanjing, China. After crossing the Pacific Ocean via Hawaii, [Solar Impulse 2] will fly across the Continental USA, stopping in three locations -- Phoenix, and New York City at JFK. A location in the Midwest will be decided dependent on weather conditions. After crossing the Atlantic, the final legs include a stop-over in Southern Europe or North Africa before arriving back in Abu Dhabi."