Sailing 60,000 kilometers—more than 37,000 miles—is an impressive feat even aboard modern luxury yachts. It's downright astounding to do it without using a single drop of oil.


At 102-feet long and 49-feet wide, the €12.5 million MS Tûranor PlanetSolar is the largest solar-powered ship to sail the seven seas. It just became the first watercraft to circle the planet using nothing but the Sun's energy.

Built by German boat-building firm, Knierim Yachtbau, the MS Tûranor PlanetSolar cost €12.5 million. Its deck is covered in 5,780 square feet of solar panels—38,000 individual photovoltaic cells—producing up to 120kW of electricity. That's fed to six massive Li-Ion battery blocks which, in turn, power four electric engines. These engines drive a pair of six-foot-wide, semi-submerged, counter-rotating carbon propellers—eliminating the need for a rudder and propelling the MS Tûranor at a respectable 14 knots. Granted, it can't keep up with massive cargo ships like the Emma Maersk, but it also doesn't burn 13 ounces of diesel fuel per revolution.


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Since each engine only produces an average of 26 HP and the solar cells have a paltry 22.6-percent conversion rate, the MS Tûranor is designed for efficiency. Its 95 ton hull is built from a foam core sandwiched between layers of carbon fiber and resin. This makes for a lightweight but extremely durable hull while extensive hydrodynamic and aerodynamic testing have ensured minimal drag.

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A crew of six piloted the Tûranor during its 585-day trans-oceanic voyage. It launched from Monaco on September 27, 2010 and sailed West for 19 months. This past Friday, May 4th, the boat came home. With a world record now under its belt, the Tûranor will be converted into a 40-passenger luxury yacht. Because, you know, Monaco.

[gizmag - planet solar - wikipedia - cleantechnica]