While most of the country was still struggling with the concept of solar power on land, one team was busy using the panels to power something a little more ambitious: a plane. The program, called Solar Impulse, is devoted to designing a plane powered entirely by solar panels, in hopes of demonstrating the potential of alternative energy. This isn't the first attempt at flying the plane, though it's the longest journey they've had yet. In 2010, the Solar Impulse team managed a 26-hour dayight flight in a rough prototype after several shorter, daytime flights and years of research. In 2012, they began a flight across the country attempting to fly - via predetermined stops - from California to New York. In 2014? They take on the world.
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