An experimental plane powered totally by the sun has successfully completed its first 24-hour test flight.

The solar prototype landed in Switzerland Thursday morning.

The plane's 262-foot wingspan is similar to a large passenger jet - plenty of room for the plane's 12,000 solar cells.

The Solar Impulse Team said the goal of the flight was to collect enough reserve energy during the day to power the plane through the night and the experiment worked.

"It was very special, you know, that's the moment that everybody has been waiting for since now almost seven years," team co-founder Bertrand Piccard said. That's a very, very important milestone for the project. I guess everybody was excited, but I was very excited too."

The next step in this seven-year project will be an Atlantic crossing. The makers of the solar plane hope it will one day be able to circle the globe.

The team said their long-term goal is not to replace conventional jet-powered planes, but to promote new energy efficient technologies.