Shipping is a major contributor to greenhouse gases but apparently the answer to solving this is wind-powered ships. Yes, you read that right, wind-powered ships. We’re not talking about just putting up a sail and hoping for the best like the old pirates did, but new hi-tech wind-propulsion systems that can be fitted to existing ships.
The first question that comes to mind is, who’s going to be peddling these ships? Are we going to see a Captain Jack Sparrow lookalike flailing around with a paddle trying to get us to our destination?
But it turns out that we won’t be relying on a single sailor’s strength to move the ship. Wind is free and blows harder at sea than on land, which means that sophisticated algorithms can be used to plan the most fuel-efficient voyage by harnessing the power of the wind. Are we going to see a new type of sailor on board – the “wind whisperer” – who spends their days listening to the wind and directing the ship accordingly?
It’s reported that wind power can supply between 10% and 90% of a ship’s power needs depending on where on the ocean they are and which weather patterns they harness. I can already imagine the ranking system for these wind-powered ships. Will one ship be known as the “Gentle Breeze” because it only relies on 10% of wind power, while another ship will be known as the “Hurricane” because it can harness up to 90% of the wind’s power?
While we applaud the efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, we can’t help but imagine what it will be like when one of these wind-powered ships meets a storm. Will the “wind whisperer” be faced with a choice between meeting the deadline or surviving the weather? Will the ship’s owner then be known as the “Captain of Chaos”?
All jokes aside, we hope that this technology can make a meaningful contribution to reducing the shipping industry’s carbon footprint, but we won’t be surprised if we see a new type of sailor emerge in the process. All hail the “wind whisperer”!
