4 ms·
I've been reading essentially the same proposals and arguments for a zeppelin revival since I was a teenager in the 1980s reading Popular Mechanics. If we tax
by eesmith 1y ago
I've been reading essentially the same proposals and arguments for a zeppelin revival since I was a teenager in the 1980s reading Popular Mechanics.
If we tax carbon to the point where zeppelins become anywhere near cost competitive with jets then I expect we'll see more passenger and cargo ships using sail.
Which is, ahem, another perennial Popular Mechanics topic, like
(2020) "This Wind-Powered Super Sailboat Will Carry 7,000 Cars Across the Atlantic" - https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/a34272175/wind-powered-sailboat-cargo-shipping-future/ https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/a34272175/wi...
To be sure, there are modern sail cargo ships. The Grain de Sail carries coffee and chocolate, for example, as does the TransOceanic Wind Transport (for the latter, https://www.fastcompany.com/91185144/the-worlds-largest-wind-powered-cargo-ship-just-made-its-first-delivery-across-the-atlantic https://www.fastcompany.com/91185144/the-worlds-largest-wind... ).
But as I recall, the carbon problem with slow passenger travel is that people tend to want things like hot showers, which airships/sailboats heat using fossil fuels, and the people who can afford to travel by ship tend to want a lot of creature comforts, and the staff to provide them.
Who will pay $10,000 for an 8 day sailing across the Atlantic with a small cabin, reheated frozen foods, and 12 liters of water allocated daily for a "Navy shower"?