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Friday, December 02, 2005
smart news: no wake zone
This Wired News article, "Sun Powers Loon-y Pontoon Boat," points out a number of advantages of a solar boat:
- No cost for gas
- No water pollution, which is huge
- Efficiency of electric motor in a steady load situation
- Most people only go boating on days with nice weather
For those who want to go faster than a 10mph party barge, why not try renewable wind power? That's seemed to work for boats for, oh, the last few thousand years.
If, as the designer of the 20-foot solar pontoon hopes, a commercial model can be sold for under $25,000, it'll be competitive with similarly sized party boats (which sell for something like $10,000-$25,000).
erik 10:41 AM | permalink | yap