WORLD'S LARGEST SOLAR PLANE to make its first cross-continent flight.

"This long-duration flight will serve as a dress rehearsal for the round-the-world flight in 2014, and will allow the team to gather experience in cooperating with international airports, integrating the prototype into regular air traffic patterns, and managing the logistics of maintenance ...."

"'Solar Impulse', the first aircraft that can fly day and night without fuel or polluting emissions, has a wingspan of 63.4 meters, as wide as an Airbus A340, and weighs only 1,600 kg. It has 12,000 solar cells mounted on the wings, which provide momentum for its four electric motors."