They were stupid then, and they're stupid now.
Weren’t they ‘tested’, starting some 500 years ago?
With the sails installed, the Pyxis Ocean’s voyage from China to Brazil is predicted to take six weeks. On a traditional voyage powered by fuel alone, the same journey can take anywhere between 20 and 40 days to compete.
Biden suggests that they travel by train instead.
Isn’t that special ? As Dana Carvey would ask 30 years ago !!
Columbus did that I think.
Kon Tiki?
I saw that same picture two decades ago. I believe it was in a Popular Science mag back when they were so concerned about “peak oil.” Nothing is new.
I would expect more precision from the engine driven journey and a greater variability from sails.
Nice change of units to confuse the reader.
They were stupid then, and they're stupid now.
Note: This is a hybrid system...it still has conventional propulsion, as a strictly ‘green’ system is simply not viable. Hybrid systems, when you can use a ‘renewable’ power source to offset petroleum use, as availability allows, may make sense and may actually be achievable. Ultimately, the market will decide this.
Welcome back to the mid 70s.
BTW...I don’t see how they modify container ships for this...the ship is loaded and unloaded from the top, where the sails would normally go.
Wow a wind powered ship what a new idea !!!
Wait what were those sails for on ships for thousands on years ???
Arrg matey. Arrg. Slower ships for plunder...
One of the greatest disadvantages to the sails were when they hit those areas with no wind ... hence the term “dead in the water”. Better have some backup.
One of the greatest disadvantages to the sails were when they hit those areas with no wind ... hence the term “dead in the water”. Better have some backup. Maybe some solar panels that could power some fans to blow on the sails.
I lived on an ex-NSSR search & rescue cutter in Stockholm. Brought her to the US via Arctic Ocean. Intent was to make L. Pepin in Peoples Republic of MN but stayed in FL instead.
“It makes sense to me.
1) It is voluntary
2) It is hybrid. Fall too far behind schedule (like reservation for Panama Canal (read up on the debacle)) and you use the engines
3) 2-tons of fuel per day is significant. I don’t give good damn about CO2 emissions, though a little about sulpher compounds.
4) as long as they allowed for interference with loading and unloading of cargo, and vertical draft in canals (bridges, etc)
Plus, I had warned the fuel company that I needed to calibrate my tanks’ sight gauges and wanted to pause refueling every 500 liters for 30 sec.
And then I get the bill. A LOT LESS Dane gold than I expected, but it was in x.xx metric tons of diesel!!!! Another damn conversion via TI calculator...”
For commodities where there is absolutely no rush getting them to their destination (which is rarely if ever the case) this could make sense. But the slower shipping is going to be very costly, way more than a few dozen tons of fuel to move tens of thousands of tons of cargo.
How much fuel would this 750-foot ship use ordinarily? What percentage of daily fuel consumption is three tons? Or, looking at it another way, how far would three tons of fuel propel that ship?
Also, what do these sails cost, and how much heavy fuel oil will that amount of money buy?