3 ms·
The figures are overly optimistic here. As a sailor, i'm certain that no one is crossing the Atlantic in 12 days at 10kts. The fastest cruiser- performance ca
by timck 6y ago
The figures are overly optimistic here.
As a sailor, i'm certain that no one is crossing the Atlantic in 12 days at 10kts.
The fastest cruiser- performance catamarans in the annual ARC Rally, sailing with the tradewinds from east to west are taking 12 days at 15kts daily average. (50% faster boat speed than this ship). And they are very experienced sailors with expert weather guidance.
And the winds when coming from americas back to europe are often against you, which is likely to make the trip 50% longer. (Tacking longer distances)
When you take the upper c02 level forecast for this ship, and assume a more realistic 20-25 days for this ship.. suddently the c02 savings are only around 50 to 60%
- throwawayForMe2 6y agoThe sails are 260 feet tall, they say they measured the winds at that height on previous crossings, maybe the winds up there give them some advantage, maybe a more direct route? Just guessing. Another thought is they can use the engine and the sails at the same time, possibly avoid long tacks but still getting fuel savings. I used to have a small sailboat with an inboard electric motor. You can do neat things with both available, the electric motor needs no warmup or startup and I could add a little push here or there if needed, or use both together.
- fuzzfactor 6y ago>the sails can be retracted to 195 feet in order to clear bridges Ruh-roh. Didn't think it looked like it would fit under the Houston Ship Channel bridge last month. >Wind Power Breezes Back into Shipping with New RoRo Concept https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24458271 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=24458271
- wffurr 6y agoAlso take into account the latitudes for sailing versus motoring. I don't know what shipping corridors typically are for diesel-powered cargo ships, but I doubt they go down to the tradewinds. On the other hand, a 650' cargo ship can handle a lot more weather than a 40' sailing sloop or catamaran, so perhaps sailing the North Atlantic is more feasible.
- darksaints 6y agoThey're not optimistic for the North Atlantic. Those aren't favorable routes for cruisers because of weather and predominant wind direction. But if you have a massive vessel like this, the North Atlantic is a great route and a lot shorter.
- dkdk8283 6y agoAgree. Look at windperfect. Seems most other commenters have never sailed. Mother nature is unpredictable and having backup power in squalls is important for safety