Not quite, in fact it took 587 days for the MS Turanor Planet Solar to circumnavigate the earth using nothing but the power of the sun.

Sound crazy? Wait til you see the boat!!!

Planet Solar in Tahiti

This vessel is the largest solar powered boat in the world. It has a whopping 537 square metres of solar panels to soak up the suns awesome energy.

One other cool thing about this catamaran is that it was designed by a guy called Craig Loomes who happens to be from a little country called New Zealand.

Planet Solar was built in Germany over 14 months and was launched in March 2010. The journey finished on the 6th of May 2012 in France, a great relief and sense of achievement for the crew of 4 I am sure.

To read more you can go to their website. www.planetsolar.org.

Another great story of mankind harnessing the best from Nature and doing their part for sustainable energy.

Reblogged from Go-Float Electric Boats | Blog:

Reblogged from kracktivist:

The solar-powered MS Turanor PlanetSolar crosses the finish line of its trip around the world at the Hercule Harbor in Monaco. (Laurent Gillieron / Associated Press / May 4, 2012)

By Deborah NetburnMay 4, 2012.

 In the spring of 2004 Raphael Domjan, a Swiss electrical engineer, conceived of a borderline insane idea -- to travel around the world aboard a ship powered entirely by solar energy.

Read more… 310 more words

“Each new sunrise provides the catamaran with the light needed to continue its journey,” the PlanetSolar team wrote on its website. It took the 115-foot boat 584 days — roughly 19 month — to make it all around the world. That is admittedly not a super-fast pace. But there were stops along the way to promote solar power and even an encounter with pirates. There was also some waiting for the sun to come up to power those lithium batteries.

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Captain Erwann Le Rouzic said he was thrilled about the implications of solar-powered travel. – AFP

ON BOARD THE PLANETSOLAR: Scanning the horizon on his solar-powered catamaran, Swiss electrical engineer Raphael Domjan counts down the hours to the completion of his record-breaking world tour.

“The idea was not to perform a feat but an eco-adventure with the aim of passing on the message that change is possible,” Domjan told AFP-TV as his boat furrowed through choppy waves from Italy’s Elba Island to Corsica in France.

Domjan began his journey from Monaco in September 2010 on the boat he built after seeing the effects of climate change on an Icelandic glacier, and he is due to complete it on May 4 when he returns to the Mediterranean port.

“I realised climate change was real and I had to do something,” he said.

The 31-metre white Planetsolar, with 537 square metres of black solar panels mounted around a raised cockpit, cost 15 million euros to build, and the project only became possible after Domjan joined up with German businessman Immo Stroeher.

Domjan, 40, and his crew, including a captain, a chief builder and a mechanic, are hoping that their exhausting but historic 600-day journey will herald a new era in eco-friendly travel, particularly in the tourism sector.

After crossing the Atlantic and passing through the Panama Canal, they crossed the Pacific and returned to Europe via the Suez Canal.

There were a few hiccups along the way, including a frustrating three-day wait off the coast of Australia when a storm blocked out the sun.

“We have everything at our disposal: the know-how, technology, raw materials and renewable energy to become sustainable and protect the planet,”said the engineer, a nature lover who is also a pilot, ambulance man and mountain guide.

Planetsolar can produce up to 500 or 600 kiloWatts per hour in good weather – enough to travel 300 kilometres when the battery is fully charged using engines no more powerful than those on a scooter.

Everything on board is solar-powered: from the boat’s engines and the on-board computers to the hot water and the light bulbs.

“The boat wasn’t easy to build, but we built it in a record time of year-and-a-half years,” said Jens Langwasser, 28, the chief builder.

“We had a lot of problems with finding the right panels, the right battery.

It hasn’t been easy. This is solar energy. You go on the road with storms, rain and all types of conditions. You never know what will happen.”As the boat requires maximum sunlight to move, it had to sail as close as possible to the Equator and follow routes that constantly had to change, based on how much sunlight was forecast for any particular day.

“Twice a day we get a bulletin with sunlight forecasts. Sometimes we have to slow down to go through a patch of clouds and find a sunny spot,” said captain Erwann Le Rouzic, 40, an experienced sailor.

Erwann said that despite all the frustrations he was thrilled about the implications of solar-powered travel.

“Of course it only works in sunny areas and on some types of boat, and I’m not saying we’ll see cargo ships becoming solar powered in 10 years, but now we know it works and there are a lot of possible uses,” he said.

Ibor, a resident of Calvi where the ship arrived on one of its final legs of the world tour, said he was impressed.

“There’s no two ways about it. This is the future. No doubt about it,” he said.

Raphael said he has managed to show to industrialists, businessmen and politicians that his were not just fantasies from the novels of Jules Verne such as “Around the World in 80 days”, but feasible ideas.

His first victory is already secure. As the Planetsolar was passing the Galapagos Islands, the government there decided to ban access to one of the archipelago’s islands to all boats except for solar or electric-powered ones.

Dengan mamakan biaya pembuatan sekitar US$ 12.5M, si ”Tenaga Matahari” ini memulai perjalanan perdananya pada bulan Maret 2010 dari Kiel – Jerman, setelah melalui proses pembuatan kapal selama 14 bulan di Knierim Yachbau shipyards.

Kemudian pada 27 September 2010, memulai misi keliling dunianya yang berawal dari Monaco untuk kampanye dan memecahkan rekor keliling dunia menggunaan energy baru. Pada misi perdananya ini Tûranor di gawangi oleh: Patrick Marchesseau (Captain dari Perancis), Christian Ochsenbein (Swiss), Jens Langwasser (Geman), Mikaela von Koskull (Finland) serta di dampingi oleh Project initiator Raphael Domjan (Swis) dan Tehnisi Daniel Stahl (German).

Di design oleh Craig Loomes dari New Zealand, kapal bertenaga surya terbesar di dunia ini di bangun dengan menggunakan konstruksi baja carbon super ringan.
Tenaga surya yang di hasilkan dari 6 blok Lithium-ion Battery-nya dengan total bentang 537m2, mampu menghasilkan tenaga yang cukup untuk menggerakan 2 mesinnya.

Berikut ini Tûranor PlanetSolar vessel particular:

• Class & Type: Yacht
• Displacement: 85 metric tons
• Berat: 95tons
• Panjang: 31m (35m termasuk flaps)
• Tinggi: 6.10m
• Draft: 1.55m
• Beam: 15m (23m termasuk flaps)
• Propulsion: 2 Permanent Magnet Synchronous electrical Motors, masing-masing 60kw, 1600rpm dan 2 Permanent Magnet Synchronous electrical Motors, masing-masing 10kw, 1000rpm.
• Kecepatan: max 14knots (26km/jam), cruising: 7.5 knots (14km/jam)
• Crew: 4 orang
• Penumpang maximum: 40 orang

Note:
Nama Tûranor PlanetSolar diambil dari cerita mitos JRR Tolkien, pengarang Lord of The Ring, yang artinya ”The Power of The Sun” – Tenaga Matahari.

There was a time when all seafaring vessels used renewable energy sources…they moved either by manpower or wind power, or a combination of the two. The Industrial Revolution changed that and the steam engine, powered by coal or wood, pushed ships out of carbon neutrality.

In March, 2010 I had the privilege to experience the Vela Sud America, a Bicentennial Regatta of tall ships commemorating the creation of the independent South and Latin America, as they passed through the Straits of Magellan near Punta Arenas, Chile on their way up the west coast of South America. The weather hadn’t yet turned very cold (it was nearing winter in the southern hemisphere) and it was a bright sunny day.

Coincidentally today, September 15th, is Independence Day in all 5 countries of Central America–Feliz Día de la Independencia!

Watching the majestic ships tack across the waves made me think about man’s relationship with the elements and how they’ve been both a challenge and a boon to our technological developments.  Harnessing water and wind have allowed numerous advances.  Solar power is another frontier and man’s ingenuity has given expression to ovens, cars, and numerous electrically run systems powered by the sun.   But one of the greatest challenges to solar technology is storage.  How do we retain and use that energy during periods when the sun isn’t shining, or how do we transport that energy away from the storage source?

Over seven years ago a “Kiwi”/German/Swiss team began a project to “take solar on the road”.  Well, actually on the water to be precise, to prove the potential of solar technology.  This mobilization is in the form of taking the Turanor PlanetSolar, a solar panel covered catamaran that resembles a robotic water beetle, around the world using solar energy alone.

The 31-meter long boat, covered with about 500 square meters of panels, set out from Monaco almost a year ago and is scheduled to arrive in Singapore later this month.  It will continue its voyage up the west coast of India and through the Suez Canal, arriving back in Monaco next May.

In a recent phone interview with New York Times reporter Bettina Wassener project coordinator Raphael Domjan stated:

“We want to show to the world what can be done, that modern solar technology has huge economic potential. The idea is to provide an impulse to the industry to consider alternatives, to think about innovative ways to reduce their energy needs.”

The team has the backing and inspiration from numerous “Godfathers“, including (but in no way limited to) a former astronaut, expedition leaders, a film-maker, and the great grandson of Jules Verne.  Independent thinkers and doers all.

Viva la Independencia!

Update Planetsolar.

Frederic Gaspoz

A German-built solar panel boat. http://www.ecorazzi.com

It’s sustainable energy technology on water! The PlanetSolar is a catamaran topped by photovoltaic solar panels, which is currently on its first boat expedition around the globe. It was constructed by Knierim Yacht Club in Kiel, Germany. It was built in 14 months and it’s the biggest solar boat ever built.

The catamaran that runs solely on energy found on light. It's currently making its first trip around the world.

It is the home of four sailors during the trip, but it can accommodate 40 people. On its website, people from around the world can independently follow the expedition. There are maps showing where the boat is, photos, daily logs, and even actual highlights.

The website says the intention is to demonstrate that by innovative use of existing materials and technology, high-performance solar mobility can be realized today.

The boat will cross all seven oceans and the crew will touch ground on different continents. The boat is an “important ambassador of solar mobility ideas.” Their message is to promote the idea of using natural resources and demonstrate their potential. The stopovers will include certain events, including conferences, platforms and get togethers. They have a bunch of engineers and staff members working for the PlanetSolar.

This is the first expedition of this kind and people have the option of following the trip live! Click here to be part of it.

PlanetSolar, the world’s biggest solar-powered catamaran, which was unveiled last year, has set sail – a record-breaking round-the-world trip – in the face of a six-month-old confirmation of doing it in 2011. The 18 million euro ($27.4 million) catamaran was built at Knierim Yacht Club in Kiel in northern Germany. The really huge – 102 feet long and 50 feet wide – vessel flaunts about 5,300 square feet of black photovoltaic solar panels that contains some 38,000 of SunPower’s next generation cells. The world tour kicked off yesterday from Monaco.

The brainchild of the German entrepreneur Immo Stroeher and Swiss project founder, Raphael Domjan, PlanetSolar ably reaches a top speed of 15 knots or 27 kilometers per hour, and can accommodate 50 passengers in absolute luxury. Special batteries on board could store enough solar energy to allow the vessel sail for about three days without fresh solar power. Planning to stop by Miami, Cancun, San Francisco, Sydney, Singapore, and Abu Dhabi through the 160 days’ trip, the green vessel will go on spreading the word that solar power is an all-effective source of energy.

Read the full article at the following link: http://www.marinelink.com/news/planetsolar-powered-solar334213.aspx

PlanetSolar2

Designed by a team of international engineers, it will be powered by approximately 38,000 of SunPower’s next generation cells, each cell offering an efficiency of at least 22 percent, the highest efficiency solar cells commercially available.

PlanetSolar will be launched in late March before starring at Hamburg port’s 821st anniversary celebrations in May and undergoing testing between June and September. The world tour will then start in April 2011.

The catamaran is expected to be the fastest solar boat to cross the Atlantic Ocean and the first to cross both the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Stopovers will include Hamburg, London and Paris in Europe, New York and San Francisco in the U.S., and Singapore and Abu Dhabi. The solar boat will be available for public display during each of its stops, offering an educational opportunity to all visitors.
Source: PlanetSolar

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Ayudando a preservar un poco mas la naturaleza y combatir el calentamiento global nos encontramos con esta noticia: PlanetSolar fue construido por  Knierim Yacht Club en Kiel Alemania; Raphael Domjan nos pone el ejemplo con este proyecto, el cual trata de construir botes que utilicen paneles solares como único recurso de energía, sin ningún tipo de combustible o velas para ayudar a propulsarse. Planetsolar no es el primer barco que se construye de esta manera pero definitivamente si es el mas grande, ya que mide 31 metros de largo, 15  ancho y 7.5 metros de alto y cuenta con 500 mts de paneles solares y con una capacidad de transportar 50 personas. Con el único propósito de probar que la industria del transporte puede reducir su dependencia en combustibles fósiles. El equipo planea navegar por todo el mundo en 120 días a una velocidad promedio de 10 nudos y el cual esta previsto realizarse en el 2011.  Go green!

Boss

Read more

Reference Link
http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/worlds-largest-solar-boat-world-tour/

Courtesy
AENews Network

Jorn Jurgens of SunPower expresses his joy, “We are proud to support the unveiling of the world’s largest solar boat. SunPower’s technology will enable the catamaran to circumnavigate the globe with the speed and performance expected from the planet’s most powerful solar.” This wonderful solar powered ship can cruise at an average speed of 8 knot (14.8 km/h) but is also capable of reaching a top speed of 15 knots. Apart from being the fastest solar boat to cross the Atlantic Ocean, SunPower will be the first to cross both the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

We are dependent on 90,000 ships for transporting of the world’s goods in exchange of 1.4 billion tonnes of CO2 per year. It amounts to twice the quantity of air transport. Now the United Nations Environment Program has come out with another dampener associated with progress i.e. sea transport, which will jump 70% by 2020 as global trade progresses. This project comes at an apt time. It wants to create an awareness regarding environmentally friendly fuels and to replace conventional fuels.

The 60 tonne vessel can hold 50 passengers. Raphaël Domjan is the skipper and chief executive and founder of the Planet Solar. Raphaël Domjan has chosen the perfect time to start a world tour with PlanetSolar. Domjan conceptualized the solar-powered vessel in 2004. PlanetSolar’s construction started early in 2008. Raphaël Domjan received funds from Rivendell Holding AG, a Swiss firm that invests in renewable energy. Raphaël Domjan will be assisted by navigator Gérard d’Aboville. He was the first sailor to row the Atlantic Ocean. They will begin the awareness solar power world tour in April. What a fine example of lead by example by this duo! They will highlight the role of sea transport in cutting down on global carbon emissions.

The solar panels installed on this ship will generate 103 kilowatts of power but the engine needs only 20 kilowatts. The rest of the power can be stored and utilized for other purposes. They needed an innovative battery storage system to store so much power so they opted for a lithium ion battery. This is being tested by a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

This ship will be launched in April. In May, the boat will make a public appearance at celebrations for the port of Hamburg. Later on the boat will be out for sea trials until September. In 2011, it is supposed to cover 40,000 km. PlanetSolar will depart from France to the Panama Canal, across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, through the Suez Canal and across the Mediterranean back to Marseilles.

Before PlanetSolar Japanese shipping giants Nippon Yusen Kaisha and Nippon Oil Corporation launched the Auriga Leader in late 2008 to be partially propelled by solar power.

Reference Link
http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/worlds-largest-solar-boat-world-tour/

Courtesy
AENews Network

The world’s largest solar boat has been unveiled. Called PlanetSolar, which is a 31m long and 15m wide white catamaran, has been designed to reach a top speed of around 15 knots, and can hold up to 50 passengers. Power entirely by up to 500 square metres of photovoltaic solar panels. The boat’s 38,000 photovoltaic cells have been provided by SunPower, their new cells have an efficiency of at least 22%. The boat has been designed for a global circumnavigation planned for 2011. The 60 ton catamaran has been built at the cost of 18 million euro(about $24.4 million) at the Knierim Yacht Club in Kiel in northern Germany.