PlanetSolar, the first circumnavigation of the world by a solar-powered boat

Friday, 18 March 2011 - 06:59 pm (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination:
Category/Kategorie: General, Energy, Environment
Reading Time:  3 minutes

in Cancun © SolarPlanet

© PlanetSolar

What is the goal of the PlanetSolar team? To be the first to circumnavigate the globe in a “solar” boat, i.e. one driven by a silent, pollution-free electrical engine powered exclusively by solar energy.
With this project, the PlanetSolar team has two objectives. Firstly, to show that current technologies aimed at improving energy efficiency are reliable and effective, and secondly to advance scientific research in the field of renewable energy. PlanetSolar has already made technological developments possible in many fields, such as the production of composite materials and structures, and also the production and storage of solar energy (or electricity). Each stage in the project and each day that PlanetSolar sails will enable science to progress.

Future-oriented technology
MS TÛRANOR PlanetSolar is a multihull vessel topped by a large array of photovoltaic solar panels, constructed by Knierim Yacht Club, in Kiel, Germany. Built in 14 months, the biggest ever solar boat has impressive dimensions but is both silent and clean. The multihull will be home to six sailors during the round-the-world attempt, and can accommodate up to forty people during the promotional trips planned at each port of call.

© PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar © PlanetSolar
<
>
© PlanetSolar
The ideal shape and size of the boat for the chosen route was determined by in-depth research. The PlanetSolar engineers have to factor in a host of parameters – propulsion, solar panel design, energy storage, materials and the external environment. A whole range of studies will need to be conducted in areas such as the boat’s hydro and aerodynamics, the materials used, the management and storage of energy and, finally, the power plant and optimal routing. It is a concentration of futuristic technology.

Technology
PlanetSolar is a catamaran that runs solely on the energy found in light. Additional removable parts allow it to expose a total of 537 m2 of photovoltaic modules (solar panels) to the sun. This impressive data makes it the biggest solar-powered ship in the world.

  • Legnth: 31 m
  • Width: 15 m
  • Length with flaps: 35 m
  • Width with flaps: 23 m
  • Height: 6.1 m
  • Draft: 1.55 m
  • Weight: 95 t
  • Surface area of solar modules: 537 m2
  • PV panel efficiency: 18.8%
  • Installed PV power: 93.5 kW (127.0 hp)
  • Average engine consumption: 20 kW (26.8 hp)
  • Crew: 6 people
  • Number of people that can go on board: 40
  • Autonomy: never-ending solar navigation

Read more on planetsolar.org and Wikipedia PlanetSolar. Learn more about the use of photos.


Recommended posts:

Share this post: (Please note data protection regulations before using buttons)

Knoxville in Tennessee

Knoxville in Tennessee

[caption id="attachment_227475" align="aligncenter" width="590"] South Gay Street © Brian Stansberry/cc-by-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state's third largest city after Nashville and Memphis. Knoxville is the principal city of the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated po...

[ read more ]

Katowice in Silesia

Katowice in Silesia

[caption id="attachment_154208" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Umkatowice/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers (tributaries of the Oder and the Vistula respectively). Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about 50 km (31 mi) north of the Silesian Beskids (part of the Carpathian Mountains) and about 100 km (62 mi) southeast of the Sudetes Mountains. It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a populati...

[ read more ]

Brownstones in New York City

Brownstones in New York City

[caption id="attachment_231699" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Brownstones in Park Slope © Mikeruggy/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Brownstone is a brown Triassic–Jurassic sandstone that was historically a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States and Canada to refer to a townhouse clad in this or any other aesthetically similar material. Brownstone, also known as freestone because it can be cut freely in any direction, was used by early Pennsylvanian Quakers to construct stone mills and ...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Latvia - Jūrmala

Theme Week Latvia - Jūrmala

[caption id="attachment_227715" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Jomas Street © Raul Cortez999/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Jūrmala (Latvian: "seaside") is a city in Latvia, about 25 kilometres (16 miles) west of Riga. Jūrmala is a resort town stretching 32 km (20 miles) and sandwiched between the Gulf of Riga and the Lielupe River. It has a 33 km (21 miles) stretch of white-sand beach, and a population of 49,325 in 2019, making it the fifth-largest city in Latvia. While Latvia was part of the Soviet Union, Jūrmala...

[ read more ]

Messner Mountain Museum

Messner Mountain Museum

[caption id="attachment_2186" align="aligncenter" width="511" caption="© messner-mountain-museum.it"][/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]The Messner Mountain Museum or MMM is a museum project by Italian mountaineer and extreme climber, Reinhold Messner, in South Tyrol in northern Italy. The mountain museum is based at five different locations. Messner Mountain Museum Firmian [caption id="attachment_161150" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Sigmundskron Castle - MMM Firmian © Hubert Berberich[/caption]The centrepiece of the Mess...

[ read more ]

The Valle Riviera in Switzerland

The Valle Riviera in Switzerland

[caption id="attachment_153938" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Iragna © biascaturismo.ch[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Descending from the North, the Riviera suddenly opens up, as the alpine valleys of Leventina and Blenio come together. From Biasca, at the end of the River Moesa, there are, on both sides of the valley, picturesque villages that give the visitor an historical vision of an important past, together with the image of modern industry. Romanesque churches and towers, stately homes of nobles past, hamlets nestl...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Belgium - Charleroi in Wallonia

Theme Week Belgium - Charleroi in Wallonia

[caption id="attachment_160795" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Charles II Square on market day © Jean-Marie Hoornaert[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Charleroi is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut. As of 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 1,462 square kilometres (564 sq mi) and had a total population of 522,522 as of 1 January 2008, ranking it as the fifth most populous in Belgium after Bru...

[ read more ]

Speyer Cathedral

Speyer Cathedral

[caption id="attachment_221528" align="aligncenter" width="590"] © Sebastian Mierzwa/cc-by-sa-4.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Speyer Cathedral, officially the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and St Stephen, in Latin: Domus sanctae Mariae Spirae (German: Dom zu Unserer lieben Frau in Speyer) in Speyer, Germany, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Speyer and is suffragan to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bamberg. The cathedral, which is dedicated to St. Mary, patron saint of Speyer ("Patrona Spirensis") and...

[ read more ]

Theme Week Brunei - Bandar Seri Begawan

Theme Week Brunei - Bandar Seri Begawan

[caption id="attachment_219906" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Omar Ali Saifuddin Mosque © Daniel Weiss/cc-by-sa-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Bandar Seri Begawan (formerly known as Brunei Town) is the capital and largest city of Brunei. It is officially governed as a municipality (Malay: bandaran). Bandar Seri Begawan has an estimated population of 100,700, and including the whole Brunei-Muara District, the metro area has an estimated population of 279,924, over half the population of the country. Brunei Internationa...

[ read more ]

Dachau in Upper Bavaria

Dachau in Upper Bavaria

[caption id="attachment_153420" align="aligncenter" width="590"] Historic District - Konrad Adenauer Street © Schlaier/cc-by-3.0[/caption][responsivevoice_button voice="UK English Female" buttontext="Listen to this Post"]Dachau is a major district town of the administrative region of Upper Bavaria, in the southern part of Germany, about 20 kilometres (12 miles) north-west of Munich. It is now a popular residential area for people working in Munich with roughly 40,000 inhabitants. The historic centre of town with its 18th-century castle is situated on an elevation and visible over a great dist...

[ read more ]

Return to TopReturn to Top
Kazan Kremlin © Untifler
Kazan, capital of Tatarstan in Russia

Kazan is the capital city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,105,000 (2002), it is the...

Market in Funchal © Hannes Grobe
Madeira, the Portuguese island in the Atlantic Ocean

Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic...

Ady Gil in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia © www.noodlesnacks.com
Ady Gil, formerly Earthrace

MY Ady Gil (formerly Earthrace) was a 78-foot (24 m), wave-piercing trimaran, which was originally created as part of a...

Schließen