Solar Impulse 2 successfully landed in Nanjing, China last week. Bertrand Piccard flew this leg and on the way took this high altitude selfie from the side of the plane and then shared it on twitter. If the twitter time stamp was set to local Chinese time then it is possible that Bertrand tweeted this photo while he was still in the air.
Nanjing is the departure point for the long grueling flight across the pacific to Hawaii in the US. This next leg will be flown by André Borschberg who is currently in Switzerland receiving treatment for migraines and a minor skin problem.
The flight from Nanjing to Hawaii will take five days and five nights, something that has never been done before in a solar powered aircraft.
André Borschberg said: “Nanjing represents a turning point in the entire mission. This is where everything comes together for us as pilots after initiating the project 12 years ago. This is the moment of truth where all the technical and human challenges will have to be overcome. We now have less than a month to mentally and physically prepare for what will be Solar Impulse’s longest flight to date, a five day and five night journey across the Pacific Ocean from Nanjing to Hawaii.”
© Solar Impulse
