MS ''Tûranor PlanetSolar'', known under the project name ''PlanetSolar'', founded by the Swiss explorer Raphaël Domjan, is the largest solar-powered boat in the world and launched on 31 March 2010. It was designed and engineered by LOMOcean Marine. In May 2012, it became the first solar electric vehicle ever to circumnavigate the globe taking 584 days between 2010 and 2012. The boat was renamed ''Race for Water'' in 2015, after the name of the foundation which then operated it. It was dedicated to water conservation missions and to prevent the oceans from

plastic pollution Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are cate ...

. In 2021, new owners Porrima projects renamed the ship ''Porrima''.

Technical characteristics

The 31-metre boat is covered by 537 m² of

solar panels A solar cell panel, solar electric panel, photo-voltaic (PV) module, PV panel or solar panel is an assembly of photovoltaic solar cells mounted in a (usually rectangular) frame, and a neatly organised collection of PV panels is called a photo ...

rated at 93 kW, which in turn connect to two

electric motors An electric motor is an electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a wire winding to generate forc ...

, one in each

hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...

. 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 . The hull was model tested in

wind tunnel Wind tunnels are large tubes with air blowing through them which are used to replicate the interaction between air and an object flying through the air or moving along the ground. Researchers use wind tunnels to learn more about how an aircraft ...

s and was tank tested to determine its

hydrodynamics In physics and engineering, fluid dynamics is a subdiscipline of fluid mechanics that describes the flow of fluids— liquids and gases. It has several subdisciplines, including ''aerodynamics'' (the study of air and other gases in motion) a ...

and

aerodynamics Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dy ...

. The boat was designed to be used as a

luxury yacht A superyacht or megayacht is a large and luxurious pleasure vessel. There are no official or agreed upon definitions for such yachts, but these terms are regularly used to describe professionally crewed motor or sailing yachts, ranging from t ...

after the record attempt was finished. It is currently being used as an ambassador for the project Race for Water. PlanetSolar IMG 6175

The boat is registered in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

and was financed by a German entrepreneur, Immo Ströher and designed by New Zealand naval architect Craig Loomes. Construction cost was

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

15 million. The name ''Tûranor'', derived from J.R.R. Tolkien's novel ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's bo ...

'', translates to "The Power of the Sun".

Around the world

On 27 September 2010, ''Tûranor PlanetSolar'' set off from

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

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 full-time crew of four including: * Raphaël Domjan of

, expedition leader * Christian Ochsenbein of Switzerland, electrical engineer * Jens Langwasser of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, quartermaster * Patrick Marchesseau of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, skipper for the first half of the voyage from Monaco to

Nouméa Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and ...

and the high-risk leg from

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dha ...

Port Sudan Port Sudan ( ar, بور سودان, Būr Sūdān) is a port city in eastern Sudan, and the capital of the state of Red Sea. , it has 489,725 residents. Located on the Red Sea, Port Sudan is recognized as Sudan's main seaport and the source of 9 ...

* Erwann Le Rouzic of France, skipper for the second half of the voyage from Nouméa to Monaco Additional crew members joined the voyage during select legs of the voyage including extra security in the

Gulf of Aden The Gulf of Aden ( ar, خليج عدن, so, Gacanka Cadmeed 𐒅𐒖𐒐𐒕𐒌 𐒋𐒖𐒆𐒗𐒒) is a deepwater gulf of the Indian Ocean between Yemen to the north, the Arabian Sea to the east, Djibouti to the west, and the Guardafui Chann ...

. A significant stopover was

Cancún Cancún ( ), often Cancun in English (without the accent; or ) is a city in southeast Mexico on the northeast coast of the Yucatán Peninsula in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. It is a significant tourist destination in Mexico and the seat ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

, during the

2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference The 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference was held in Cancún, Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010. The conference is officially referred to as the 16th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework ...

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. ''Tûranor PlanetSolar'' returned to Monaco on 4 May 2012 after 584 days sailing around the globe.

2013 voyage and transatlantic record

After an engine refit, ''Tûranor PlanetSolar'' broke its own record, crossing the Atlantic Ocean from

Las Palmas Las Palmas (, ; ), officially Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, is a Spanish city and capital of Gran Canaria, in the Canary Islands, on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital (jointly with Santa Cruz de Tenerife), the most populous city in the auto ...

to Saint Martin in the Caribbean in only 22 days, four days faster than on the circumnavigation trip. The boat left Las Palmas on 25 April and arrived in Marigot on Saint Martin on 18 May. The trip led to

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, Florida, and then continued as a scientific expedition along the

Gulf Stream The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension the North Atlantic Drift, is a warm and swift Atlantic ocean current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico and flows through the Straits of Florida and up the eastern coastline of the Unit ...

. On the return trip the boat reached St John's, Newfoundland, on 1 August 2013 before heading back across the Atlantic. The story of ''Tûranor PlanetSolar'' can be found in Kevin Desmond's 280-page ''Electric Boats and Ships: a History'' published by McFarland Books in September 2017.

References

External links

* (archived)
PlanetSolar Foundation
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turanor Planetsolar Solar-powered vehicles Electric boats Motor yachts Catamarans 2010 ships Circumnavigations Photovoltaics Solar power in Switzerland

Technical characteristics

Around the world

2013 voyage and transatlantic record

See also

References

External links