World’s largest solar-powered vessel docks in Halifax

HALIFAX – PlanetSolar certainly stands out against the backdrop of the Halifax waterfront.

It’s 35 meters long, 23 meters wide and can travel at a maximum speed of 14 knots, and it has travelled around the globe without ever using a single litre of gasoline.

Outfitted with almost 30,000 photovoltaic cells on the top deck, PlanetSolar can store up to 72 hours worth of energy in lithium batteries beneath the hull.

“You put the engines on, you won’t know they’re on,” he said.

WATCH: Extended look at PlanetSolar

The solar panels are reeled in while the boat is docked, but when in open water, they expanded, nearly doubling the size of the deck.  The crew consists of nine people, including four scientists from Geneva.

“The research on board aims at characterizing both the ocean along the Gulf Stream and the aerosols, all the particles that are suspended in the air, and to see the connection between the two,” says Gerome Kasparean, a researcher from the University of Geneva. “It’s all about the environment and the climate impact of the Gulf Stream.”

While in Halifax, the Swiss scientists plan to liaise with experts from Dalhousie University and the Bedford Institute of Oceanography to further expand their research berth.

The vessel departed Boston on July 4th and a stop in Halifax was a last minute decision.

Reaction to the unusual sight on the waterfront is fraught with amazement.  “I’m on a cruise ship today and we used an tremendous amount of gasoline,” says Benji Lewis, visiting from Boston. “So the fact that it’s solar powered 100% makes you feel good about the environment.”

“It’s quite something,” says Mike McCluskey, “we were just looking at it, the solar power on a day like today it’s perfect to recharge the batteries eh?”

PlanetSolar will leave Halifax on Tuesday. It’s next stop is St John’s, N.L.