Solar Impulse 2 leaves Abu Dhabi on a round-the-world flight

Solar Impulse-2, a solar-powered aircraft officially took off from Abu Dhabi’s Al-Bateen executive airport in an attempt to break records, by flying around the world without using a single drop of fuel.

Solar Impulse-2 took off from the UAE capital heading east to Muscat in Oman to complete a five months trip circulating the globe back to Abu Dhabi. The trip will see the aircraft crossing both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans in the process.

Swiss pilots André Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard will take turns piloting the single seater Solar Impulse 2 for 35,000km. The pilots will have to endure 250 hours each inside a narrow cockpit with 20-minute naps every two to four hours. Temperatures outside the aircraft will be ranging between -40C to 40C.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq7wdyp_Xvw

The cockpit contain life support systems, food and oxygen supplies. The pilot’s chair triples as bed, chair and toilet. The team will stop at various locations around the globe to rest and to carry out maintenance on the aircraft.

The plane is powered by 17,000 solar panels on its wings and fuselage with a 633 kg container of lithium batteries that will store the energy to run during the nights.