Solar Impulse 2
The first solar plane By William
The Solar Impulse 2 is the world's first solar plane. It has a wingspan of 72 metres. That's the length of a jumbo jet! With a flight time of 25 days, The Solar Impulse 2 is flying around the world only using solar power. Although it's using solar power, it will fly during the night. If there wasn't enough sunlight, there are 4 batteries onboard the plane. This is a lot better for the environment and people say that eventually commercial flights will be solar powered.
This plane has taken 5 years of trial and testing. It weighs 2.3 tonnes which is equivalent to 2 cars, but it can only fit the pilot in the wardrobe-sized cockpit and the people who are going on the journey. The people going on the journey might also set a record and find themselves in history books.
Getting to the point of flying the plane is a massive acheivement and technology has dramatically improved over time, which has allowed people to be able to fly this plane. This has been described as a 'solar revolution' and many people are hopeful that we will see more solar planes in the sky one day.