A
DIY nuke detector won't be the only oddity out in the San Francisco Bay before too long, as we're hearing that Hornblower Yachts is currently lobbying for Coast Guard approval to operate a solar-powered ferry in the area by 2009. The sails (but not the actual vessel) would be created by Australia's Solar Sailor, which already has a
sun-lovin' boat that cruises around the sunny Sydney Harbor and utilizes eight solar sails to dramatically decrease its consumption of diesel. Furthermore, the firm is planning to deliver a set of sails to a ginormous passenger boat in Shanghai and could be close to landing a contract for four 100-person ferries in Hong Kong. If you're wondering just how much coin you'd have to cough up to snag a few solar sails for personal use, we're told that $1.5 million of the estimated $8.5 million reserved for the San Fran boat will be headed straight to Solar Sailor, so yeah, only the affluent need apply.
[Image courtesy of
Solar Sailor]
posted November 9th 2007 3:05AM
awesome, another ferry that will take too long to get me to work!
How long does it take for $1.5 Mil to offset savings on diesel hmm....
I'm skeptical.
Looking at the linked boat (the NZ one), it has a set of solar panels. There are 42 of them (in a grid 6x7). Let's assume these are the newest 330W panels from Sunpower.
That would mean this thing is making 13.86KW of power at noon on a sunny day. That's 18.6HP.
18.6HP is PEANUTS. It's not going to move a boat of that size at any usable speed. And it's not going to noticeably cut the Diesel usage when the boat is moving.
well, read above, it says these are already working in sydney, so they must be moving somehow...
16KW according to the link, 10 knots with wind and sun. Not to mention it STILL runs off diesel, just 1/10th the amount of a typical boat that size. Read the article before commenting.
For some reason, this photo makes me think of Legos.
It makes me think of Star Wars Imperial Shuttles.
But maybe that's just me...
I think you'll get more energy out of that thing when the wind blows on it than when the sun shines on it.
Wow, that's a terrific boat-turner sail! I don't think that's good at the high speeds a ferry can sail.
Funny thing is that it's foggy most of the time in SF Bay... would enough light get through?
have any of you ever actually been to san francisco? we're talking about the bay, not ocean beach or haight street. it's sunny down there almost every day. and while we're at it, people here don't actually eat rice-a-roni for a "treat," either.
Actually, I live in SF... and I've been down to the Bay... and I've been on several different Hornblower's ferry tours... and for many parts of where the Hornblower's ferry travels, it can get a bit foggy (and cold!) at certain times, even though further up in the atmosphere, it is quite sunny... but you are right, it's not always foggy, and even when there is, it does burn off... but for a city which has a reputation for fog (unlike Sydney which is pretty much sunny most of the time - and I grew up there BTW!), just thought I'll point out the slight irony of the situation...
It might not pollute the atmosphere so much, but it pollutes my eyes. Urr-gly
HOW'S THE SUN GOING TO GET TO THE COLLECTORS THROUGH THE FOG?
This thing has been cruising around the harbour for a few years now. Its almost always sunny here in Sydney, so I guess it works. Its not exactly big enough to be a commuter ferry though. Those all still run on filthy diesel :o
According to that graphic, the ship also creates no wake... nor does it break the surface tension of the water! Truly amazing! ;)
Sweet!