A TEAM of drivers hopes to be the first to motor all the way from Europe to the United States by crossing the frozen seas of the Bering Strait between Russia and Alaska.

The 18,000-mile Project Overland, is braving some of the world's most desolate areas in sub-zero temperatures.

In four trucks made by Italian manufacturers Iveco, the squad of eight drivers left Turin in November last year.

The team is now in eastern Siberia, and aims to reach the Bering Strait in the next two weeks.

Satellite technology will show if the winter ice is thick enough for the lorries to make the estimated 25-mile crossing over the frozen sea to Alaska.

Two years ago, Ford tried the same crossing with a fleet of cars, but abandoned the attempt when vehicles began to sink.