A solar-powered aircraft has this week been plying the skies around Moffett Field in San Francisco, California, as its inventors rehearse for their next ambitious move: a coast-to-coast sunshine-fuelled flight across the US.
Since 2006, Solar Impulse has been gradually ramping up the capabilities of its solar-powered, single-seat aircraft with a number of hops around Europe and Africa. The latest design of the 80-metre-wingspan plane, which has 12,000 photovoltaic cells peppered all over its wings and tailplane, charges batteries that power four electric motors.
Source:
http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Articles/2013/04/24/56000/solar-plane-rehearses-for-coast-to-coast-flight.htm
