Self-fueling boat sets off from Paris on 6-year world trip
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In this Tuesday, July 4, 2017 file photo, the Energy Observer, a former race boat turned into a autonomous navigation with hydrogen, sails on the Seine river in Paris. (AP)
A boat that fuels itself is setting off around the world from Paris on a six-year journey that its designers hope will serves as a model for emissions-free energy networks of the future.
Energy Observer will use its solar panels, wind turbines and a hydrogen fuel cell system to power its trip. The 5 million-euro ($5.25 million) boat heads off Saturday from Paris toward the Atlantic.
The futuristic-looking 30.5-meter (100-foot) boat will rely on sun or wind during the day and tap into its hydrogen reservoirs at night. It produces its own hydrogen through electrolysis of sea water.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Originally designed in 1983, the boat enjoyed a successful career in open-sea sailing races before skippers Frederic Dahirel and Victorien Erussard and a French research institute converted it into the Energy Observer project.