Sailing

In a typical sailboat race, the course is marked with a series of buoys that have to be anchored to the seabed, and which may get pushed around by winds or currents. MarkSetBot addresses those problems, with internet-connected robotic buoys.

After sending a fleet of self-sailing drones into the path of Hurricane Sam to help improve forecast models, Saildrone has now launched three uncrewed surface vehicles into the Gulf Stream winter to gather data on carbon uptake in the ocean.

Earlier this year, Saildrone joined forces with NOAA to launch sensor-packed unmanned surface vehicles into paths of hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean to gather data. Now one of those drones has captured footage from inside a Category 4 hurricane.

Two teams, Switzerland's SP80 and France's Syroco, are taking aim at the world speed sailing record in 2022, with a pair of thoroughly remarkable kiteboats that both teams believe can smash previous records, targeting top speeds up to 80 knots.

Though some folks chase storms for thrills or curiosity, there are also those who do so for scientific purposes. And it's the lattermost pursuit that will see a small fleet of unmanned surface vehicles deliberately head into hurricane territory.

San Francisco-based aquatic drone-maker Saildrone has returned with a bigger and better version of its unmanned vehicle designed to explore the seas, the newly introduced 72-ft (22-m) Saildrone Surveyor.

What connects the America's Cup, a dinner in Egypt and a house with no knocker? The answer is a man called Robert, born 216 years ago today, and his ill-fated sail boat: a schooner by the name of Titania.

After trying and failing last year, Offshore Sensing has now succeeded in sailing an unmanned vessel across the Atlantic. The Sailbuoy Met was deployed from Newfoundland on June 7, 2018 and reached the coast of Ireland on August 26, a distance of 3,000 km.

​Australian research group CSIRO will be using aquatic drones to explore the Southern Ocean. The government agency has announced a partnership with San Francisco-based Saildrone, and will be utilizing three of the startup's unmanned vehicles for the next five years.

With about 100 days left before the America's Cup kicks off in Bermuda, Oracle Team USA recently took their racing boat out of the warehouse and put it in the water. New Atlas was on hand at the event, which included a question-and-answer session with team skipper, Jimmy Spithill.

A partnership between America's Cup defenders Oracle and aircraft makers Airbus was announced in 2014. Today the sleek, speedy child of that union was revealed to the world in Bermuda, and New Atlas was on-hand to witness it.

After viewing the Frankfurt Motor Show, Gizmag headed south to Lake Constance for the 2015 Interboot show. We saw everything from ceiling-scraping sailboats and hydrofoils, to compact electric leisure vessels, to modulars and inflatables.