Tûranor PlanetSolar "The Power of the Sun", world first largest solar electric ship to circumnavigate earth with zero pollution

Minute PlanetSolar - April 2011 - World Tour Through the Pacific
Uploaded on May 6, 2011

PlanetSolar around the World
Published on Apr 12, 2012
Turanor PlanetSolar is a solar powered catamaran that is circumnavigating the World. The project was dreamed up by Raphael Domjan and enabled by businessman Immo Stroher.

PlanetSolar in Greece for TerraSubmersa Expedition!
Published on Sep 2, 2014
In August 2014, the vessel resumed her role as a scientific platform for the University of Geneva with the Expedition TerraSubmersa. It aims to explore the prehistoric landscapes submerged in the Argolic Gulf in Greece, in an attempt to reconstitute them and perhaps to find traces of human activity.

PlanetSolar in Venice (Italy)
Published on Oct 2, 2014
PlanetSolar in Venice (Italy), last stopover of the 2014 campaign!

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PlanetSolar Newsletters ~
14Oct2014: Conclusion of the 2014 expeditions
29Aug2014: Discovering the Mediterranean, Greece and submerged prehistoric landscapes
01Jul2014: From the English Channel to the Mediterranean Sea
17Mar2014: PlanetSolar returns for 2014!
20Dec2013: What’s cooking for 2014...
13Oct2013: PlanetSolar drops anchor in London—the final stage of the DeepWater scientific expedition!
29Aug2013: A solar boat in a state of inebriation for science
06Jul2013: From Miami to New York: a journey filled with adventure!
20Jun2013: Miami, a stopover filled with surprises
23May2013: PlanetSolar reached St. Martin and beat its own record speed for a solar-powerd transatlantic crossing!
10Apr2013, Kickoff and Launch of 2013 Campaign!
11Oct2012: Summary of the promotional summer tour
14Jun2012: The first world tour of history with solar energy is a success !
17Apr2012: The arrival is soon
05Mar2012: Crossing the Gulf of Aden, from the Arabian Sea to the Red Sea
07Feb2012: UAE stopovers and Gulf of Aden preparation
30Dec2011: Accross Indian Ocean

MS Tûranor PlanetSolar, known under the project name PlanetSolar, is the largest solar-powered boat in the world. The vessel was designed by LOMOcean Design, built by Knierim Yachtbau in Kiel, Germany, and launched on 31 March 2010.

In May 2012, it became the first ever solar electric vehicle to circumnavigate the globe.
The 31-meter boat is covered in over 500 square meters of solar panels rated 93 kW, which in turn connect to one of the two electric motors in each hull. There are 8.5 tons of lithium-ion batteries in the ship's two hulls. The boat's shape allows it to reach speeds of up to 14 knots. The hull was model tested in wind tunnels and was tank tested to determine its hydrodynamics and aerodynamics. The boat has been designed to be used as a luxury yacht after the record attempt is finished. It is currently being used as a floating marine research laboratory by Geneva University.

The boat is registered in Switzerland and was financed by a German entrepreneur. Construction cost was € 12.5 million. The name Tûranor, derived from J.R.R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings, translates to "The Power of the Sun".

Around the world
On 27 September 2010, Tûranor PlanetSolar set off from Monaco to circumnavigate the globe solely with the aid of solar power. One aim of the project was to focus public awareness on the importance of renewable energies for environmental protection.

The boat had a crew of six. The captain of the expedition was Frenchman Patrick Marchesseau, but at the midpoint of the circumnavigation (in New Caledonia in mid-May 2011) the French Canadian Erwann Le Rouzic took over as captain, to share the master's responsibility with Captain Marchesseau. Other participants were Christian Ochsenbein (Bern, Switzerland) and Jens Langwasser (Kiel, Germany); as well as the project initiator, president and expedition leader Raphaël Domjan (Neuchatel, Switzerland).

A significant stopover was Cancún, Mexico, during the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference held there from 29 November to 10 December 2010.

During the expedition, Tûranor PlanetSolar broke two records: the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by solar boat and the longest distance ever covered by a solar electric vehicle. Technical problems with the propeller system forced the vessel to stay in an Asian port for two weeks of maintenance.

Tûranor PlanetSolar returned to Monaco on 4 May 2012 after 584 days sailing around the globe. The vessel was then scheduled for a refit so it could be chartered to tourists in the Mediterranean Sea. Cruises are planned with 12 passengers and four crew on board.

2013 Voyage and transatlantic record
After an engine refit, Tûranor PlanetSolar broke its own record, crossing the Atlantic ocean from Las Palmas to Saint Martin in the Caribbean in only 22 days, four days faster than on the circumnavigation trip. The boat left Las Palmas on April 25 and arrived in Marigot on Saint Martin on May 18. The trip led to Miami, Florida, and then continued as a scientific expedition along the Gulf Stream. On the return trip the boat reached St John's, Newfoundland, 1 August 2013 before heading back across the Atlantic.

28 July 2014 - The world's largest solar boat, the catamaran PlanetSolar on a Greek mission to find one of the oldest sites inhabited by man in Europe - "MS Turanor PlanetSolar" sails through the Corinth Canal near the town of Corinth, Greece. The month-long mission, starting on August 11 - a team of Swiss (University of Geneva researchers) and Greek scientists (jointly organised with the Swiss school of archaeology and the Greek culture ministry) will seek a "prehistoric countryside" in the southeastern Peloponnese peninsula.

28 April 2013 - The world’s largest solar powered ship with zero environmental pollution
Global Energy crisis is a hot debate these days and scientists are coming up with alternative means to provide for the power requirements. We covered the flying wind mill a few days back and they keep coming up with new innovative methods for power generation. While some of them can be employed on a larger scale and may provide energy for more than one individual, some projects focus on individuals and deliver power for a single household or a vehicle. Solar power has been around for quite some time now and is proving to be very versatile and adaptable source of energy. Today we present the world’s largest solar powered ship. As the name implies, the idea is not new. However, it is impressive because of the scale of things. PlanetSolar has come up with this ship that runs on solar power. The ship has a length of 31m and a width of 15m. Want to take a guess of how many kilowatts it can generate? Here’s a hint, the engine requires around 20 kW. The ship is able to capture almost 103.4 kW of solar energy! That is five times more than what is required. The engine requires 20 kW to achieve a mean speed of 8 knots which is equal to 15 Kph or 9Mph and it is possible for the ship to go twice as fast. This marvelous solar powered ship weighs about 60 ton and costs $24.4 million! The assembly of this ship was carried out at Knierim Yacht club in Kiel, Northern Germany. It took 14 months for this ship to be assembled and launched.

To ensure full maximum solar energy generation, solar cell covered flaps have been installed which are extended at the stern and amidships. Photovoltaic cells have been provided by SunPower and a huge number of 38,000 units have been installed on the ship. The company claims that these photovoltaic cells have an efficiency of 22 %, which renders them as the most efficient photovoltaic cells available in the market right now. The idea conceiver, Raphaël Domjan, is from Switzerland and along with Frenchman Gérard d’Aboville, made the world’s first trip around the world that was powered by solar energy. They travelled more than 60,000 km and ended their trip on 4th May, 2012.

The PlanetSolar team stated that their invention is not intended to replace any traditional marine vehicles. However, they stressed that boating as a activity has been around for a long time and has become a source of pollution for the environment and people have forgotten how clean their transport can be. “Today the boat is the most used means of transport of goods. It represents single-handedly almost 1.4 billions of tons of carbon dioxide (in 2008), that is 6% of the total carbon dioxide emissions and twice more than the air transport.” The project comes with zero environmental pollution and that is perhaps the most impressive feature of this world’s largest solar powered ship.

May 7, 2012 - World’s Largest Solar Powered Ship Completes Record-Breaking Circumnavigation
On Friday the world’s largest ship running solely on the power of the sun cruised into Hercule Harbor in Monaco, officially completing the world’s first circumnavigation for a 100% solar powered ship.

The vessel, a 31m catamaran named MS Turanor PlanetSolar, is equipped with 537 square meters of solar panels used to recharge 6 blocks of lithium-ion batteries with every sunrise. Rated to 93 kW, the propulsion package and efficient hull design generates enough power for the vessel to reach speeds of up to fourteen knots.

The Turanor PlanetSolar is the brainchild of Raphael Domjan of Switzerland who in the Spring of 2004 first envisioned the expedition based on his love of Jules Verne’s novels. Years later, construction began at the Knierim Yachtbau shipyard in Germany and she was eventually launched in March 2010.

Finally, in September 2010, the MS Turanor PlanetSolar left Monocco with a four-man crew in hopes of sailing around the world strictly on solar power. Nineteen months later; after crossing the Atlantic and Pacific, passing through both Panama and Suez canals, and navigating the treachorous waters of the Gulf of Aden, the Turanor PlanetSolar completed its journey, breaking records for fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by solar boat and longest distance ever covered by a solar electric vehicle along the way.

Now, the journey will be put together into a book and documentary film scheduled to be released in September. The vessel itself will undergo a retrofitting to allow for more passengers and will be available for charter to adventurers looking for a bit of green history.

03.10.2012 PlanetSolar is the winner of the 2012 Practical Boat Owner (PBO) Green Award in the category "Best boat and best boat builder" for having circumnavigated the globe using solar energy only. The winners were announced in the Practical Boat Owner Magazine as well as at the Southhampton Boat show on September 14th, 2012. The PBO Green Awards is an industry-wide recognition of sound eco-credentials, showcasing organizations such as ours for promoting marine industry sustainability and helping to reduce the impact of boating on the environment. "We are very proud to receive this award and are looking forward to continuing to promote the use of solar power this upcoming year! "
To the PlanetSolar team!
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Image courtesy wonderfulengineering.com, planetsolar.org, and wikipedia.org