When
sun21 arrived in Martinique’s harbor on February 2, 2007, she became the first motorized vessel to cross the Atlantic under solar power exclusively; her 52-day, 3,500-NM trip began at Porto Sherry in Chipiona, Spain.
sun21 is the brainchild of
Mark Wüst, a Swiss shipbuilder whose goal was to prove that solar-powered technology was capable of providing sufficient energy for passagemaking. After extensive research a ship was built, and its maiden voyage was along the Rhine River from Basel, Switzerland, to Rotterdam, Netherlands.
The 45-foot
sun21’s solar power is collected via 48, 2'x5' photovoltaic panels on her roof that power twin 8-kW
Lemco lightweight, low-voltage D.C. motors. During the 52-day trip,
sun21 harvested 2,000-kWh of solar energy; the crew estimated that a similar-size and powered diesel yacht would’ve burned more than $4,700 of fuel during the same trip.
The sun21 is scheduled to arrive in New York City’s
North Cove Marina on May 8th; stay tuned as
PMY will certainly cover her arrival. For more information on the
sun21, or to read the captain's log documenting the journey, go to the
sun21 Web site.
The sun21 slipped into New York City’s North Cove Marina emitting no discernable sound except the hollers and cheers from an enthusiastic crew who had sailed her across the pond in a 52-day, 3,500-NM trip. As reported here in an earlier post, the Sun21 is the first motorized vessel to cross the Atlantic under solar power exclusively. The photo below shows her eight 2'x5' photovoltaic panels on her roof that power her twin 8-kW Lemco lightweight, low-voltage D.C. motors. A 3,600-pound bank of batteries stores the power, so on days when there is less sun (or hardly any at all), the boat can still go along at approximately 3 knots.
It turns out that this project, spearheaded by Swiss shipbuilder Mark Wüst (who along with David Senn, Michel Thonney, Beat von Scarpatetti, and Martin Vosseler made the transatlantic voyage) is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to clean energy emerging from Switzerland. The Swiss meet 57 percent of their energy needs via hydropower, with wind, solar, and organic waste recycling delivering results in cities across the country.
With fuel prices predicted to approach $4.00/gallon at your local on-road gas station, how much do you think gasoline and diesel will be at your fuel dock this season? Is solar power feasible in private vessels? Tell us what you think here.
