Stand Aside, Green Cars

The Ocean

Cars, of course, are what we all think of when hear something like "polluting vehicles." But anyone who has filled up a motorboat's gas tank can tell you that boats guzzle their fare share of fuel too, even if they aren't the daily commuter vehicle of choice. That's why it's nice too see that among all the efforts to develop environmentally friendly automobiles, someone is making a wave-powered boat.

The Suntory Mermaid II, just such a vessel, completed a 4,350 mile journey from Honolulu, Hawaii, to the Kii Channel off Japan's eastern coast on Friday night. The voyage clocked in at 111 days, a bit slower than the 60 days predicted by the design team, perhaps due to unusually calm seas. The Suntory Mermaid II is powered by a special bow-mounted device which uses energy provided by waves to power flipper-like appendages at the stern. With a dolphin kick from each of the two independent flippers, the craft is propelled forward.

To read more about this remarkable voyage, visit http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/08/science/08wave.html?_r=1&ref=science&oref=slogin