The 31-meter Turanor, a catamaran yacht fitted with 536 square meters of photovoltaic panels, has successfully sailed halfway around the world, from Monaco to Brisbane, Australia, powered solely by the sun.   The Turanor‘s captain and crew are half way toward completing their goal of piloting the first solar powered vessel to circumnavigate the world.

World’s largest solar-powered yacht reaches milestone in record voyage

“So far everything has gone according to plan,” said the Swiss-born skipper and former mountain guide Raphael Domjan. “By making it this far we’ve already demonstrated the huge potential for high-performance solar mobility — and we also hope we’ve inspired others to have more faith in renewables.”

The 60-ton vessel — which is dotted with over 536 square meters of photovoltaic panels — can sail for up to five nights without direct sunlight, supported by reserves stored in the world’s largest rechargeable lithium battery.

“Before we set out, this was one of my greatest fears — that we would be without sunlight for so long we’d run out of battery and end up stranded in the middle of the ocean,” recalled Domjan, who is joined on board by Gerard d’Aboville — the first man to row across the Atlantic and the Pacific — as well as two additional engineers.

However, the skipper is proud to reveal that the battery has never dipped below 20%. “We are very happy with the performance of the boat,” he said. “Although it is going a little bit slower then expected in good conditions, it is much better with difficult weather.”

The $16 million vessel is a “catamaran,” a type of craft with two hulls, which saves energy by slicing rather than riding the waves. But despite its streamline design, the shark-shaped ship travels at an average speed of just 7.5 knots — about that of a large ocean liner.

Thanks to Phil Leon for passing the article along.