China Departure Starts Rigorous 6 Day Adventure

Gutsy... that's the only word that encapsulates what started just a few minutes ago at 1839UTC.

The 6 day/night exploration flight of Solar Impulse has commenced from Nanjing to Hawaii. Pilot André Borschberg will fly the zero-fuel airplane, solo, some 4412NM with an arrival planned in Hawaii late next week.... and in the meantime, one of the last great aviation adventures faces its most daunting challenge after days of waiting to allow Mother Nature to present favorable conditions for the flight. 

The Solar Impulse2 program, being flown alternately by pilots Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg, has thus far finished 6 primary legs of a flight around the world in a vehicle that is fueled only by electrical energy captured from sunlight. The single seat SI2 is made of carbon fiber, with a 72 meter wingspan (larger than that of the Boeing 747-8I) and adds up to a weight of just 2,300 Kg -- just a bit over 5070 pounds. The 17,000 solar cells built into the wing supply four 17.5 CV electric motors with 'fuel.'

During the day, the solar cells recharge 2077 lbs lithium batteries allowing the aircraft to fly at night until the next day when the recharging cycle can begin anew.

The flight will be a grueling one, but one in which the risks have been measured carefully and demonstrated in February 2012, when André succeeded in staying in the HB-SIB simulator for 72 hours, under the supervision of a team of doctors and nutritionists. Nearly a year later, in December 2013, Bertrand achieved the same Flight Simulation exercise. ANN is monitoring the flight closely and will keep you apprised as André makes his way to Hawaii...

FMI: www.solarimpulse.com