TheSolar Impulseis a fairly simple piece of machinery: it has a 208-foot wingspan, measures 3,500 pounds, and is powered by four 10-horsepower electric motors that gather energy from batteries. The plane’s batteries are replenished by 12,000solarcells located on its wings.
Theplanewill begin its journey from a military airbase in Payerne and land at Geneva International Airport. No word yet on when the flights will take off, but the Solar Impulse team says it will be sometime next year. After that, the plane will gear up for its ultimate goal of taking a purelysolar-poweredflight around the world — an objective that Solar Impulse team members hope can be reached by 2013 or 2014.
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