Solar-Powered Floating Devices: Yachts, Sailboats, and Hotels!

The new craze to be hitting the rich folk is luxury, solar-powered yachts. The rich elite are searching for a way to yacht around silently and the solution is solar power! Take a peek at some of these unique boats:

Wired: Cruise in Silence

The Ned Ship Group and STR Europe have joined together to build luxurious yachts that use solar cells with electric or hybrid power plants  These boats will be around 65-feet long and will feature a pool and entertainment areas. The boat, when fully electrically powered can cruise up to 1o knots six hours a day!

Times of Malta: What a Sunbather

The MS Tûranor Planetsolar sailed around the globe without using any sort of fuel whatsoever. This is a 100-foot catamaran with over 500 square meters of high-efficiency solar panels.

More on the MS Turanor: CNN- $16m solar boat sails into record books

inhabitat: Solar-Powered Floating Island is an Off-Shore Green Retreat

Drift along the coast with a self-sustaining floating “resort!” Michele Puzzolante designs such an escape that sleeps six and has underwater observations rooms. These islands are powered by thin-film skin photovaltaic panels!

inhabitat: $40 Million Emax E-Volution Solar Sailboat for the Eco-Concious Yachtsman

Recently revealed to the public in Monte Carlo, the Emax E-Volution solar hybrid yacht can run on marine diesel, solar power, and just wind too!