A solar-powered sailboat: Counter-intuitive or just good design?

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consider sailor's state of mind

One sails for the experience and the freedom from fossil fuels. A $40,000 sailboat is capable of sailing around the world and even some as shorter than 10 meters have done so. A multi-million dollar motor cruiser will have a range under 3000 nautical miles and burn many hundreds of gallons of diesel in the process. Sailors choose the sailing lifestyle and will avoid calm areas and times of the year content to anchor for a month or more in some desolate spot like Bali if need be. Solar is great for powering the electronics, which can include the ability to download current weather satellite maps to aid in route planning. But using solar to move a sail boat is silly at best and the kind of thing that only an engineer with no real ties to the sea would consider much less implement. And for people that are really concerned about needing to move on a schedule there are engines on board most sailboats over 25 feet in length and sufficient fuel to take the boat at least several hundred miles, or motor sailors with even great range. Speed is not an issue as sailboat speed, unless they employ planning hulls like a catamaran, is a function of the length of the waterline of the boat with most boats having a maximum speed of 6-9 knots and most will attain their greatest speeds under sail and not under power. I would expect that a "solar powered" cat will do 5 knots with solar power but 20 knots or better with wind power.

Posted by: stenman@...   Posted on: 03/19/09 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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