Solar-powered aircraft making bid to complete 1st intercontinental flight
Like an adventurer from another age, Bertrand Piccard took off from Madrid, Spain this morning in his Solar Impulse aircraft in a bid to become the first aviator to complete a transcontinental solar-powered flight.
As this article is being written Piccard is well into his 2,500 kilometer voyage to the Moroccan capital of Rabat.
Currently approaching the Strait of Gibraltar, Piccard is expected to land, under solar-charged battery power, at about 9 p.m. local Moroccan time.
Piccard, who turned heads with the Solar Impulse when he flew it into the most recent Paris Airshow, has said his goal is to change the public's ideas about limits and possible uses of renewable energy sources.
During an in-flight interview, the pilot said Morocco was chosen as his destination because the nation is currently building the world's largest solar power facility.
In 2010 Solar Impulse became the first manned aircraft to fly for 24 hours using only the sun's power.
For additional information (and to watch Piccard's progress live):
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