The "MS Turanor" is the first solar-powered vessel

The "MS Turanor" is the first solar powered boat to sail around the world. The circumnavigation took 585 days to complete. 

The boat's top speed is 7.5 knots - about that of an oil tanker, The "Turanor" set five Guinness World Records during its voyage. 

For 585 days, Swiss adventurer Raphael Domjan braved storms, pirates and cloudy skies in an attempt to circumnavigate the globe on a boat propelled by nothing but sun beams. The boat, christened "Turanor" after a word meaning "power of the sun" in JRR Tolkein's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, is Domjan's brainchild. As heavy as a whale and 30 meters long, it's adorned with enough photovoltaic panels to cover two tennis courts.

After eight years of fundraising, 64,000 hours of construction, and 19 months at sea, the "Turanor" made history on May 6, when it cruised into Port Hercules, Monaco, completing the first ever round-the-world journey by a solar-powered vessel.From the coast of Miami to the shores of Mumbai, Domjan and his four-man crew visited 28 countries on a voyage designed to showcase the practical applications of solar energy.

"The aim of this journey was to show the world that this technology is not science fiction, it is very real and it can help us change how we do things now rather than in the future," said Domjan

Everywhere we went people would flock around the boat. They had never seen such a strange design before," he added."I remember sitting on my grandfather's knee listening to him reading 'Around the world in 80 days' by Jules Verne. It made me want to go out and explore just like Phileas Fogg," recalled Domjan. "Normally ships speed up to 15 or 20 knots when crossing this area but we couldn't go faster than five knots," said Domjan. Indeed, one of "Turanor's" comparative limitations is its snail-like pace. It has a maximum speed less than that of a large oil-tanker, just 7.5 knots (14 kilometers an hour).

It would have certainly made a rare and impressive bounty. The $16 million vessel not only boasts 536 square-meters of shiny photovoltaic panels, but also the world's largest rechargeable lithium battery -- capable of storing enough power to allow the "Turanor" to travel for five full days without sunlight.

The ship's captain has reason to be proud. Having completed the 50,000 kilometer journey, the "Turanor" returns with five Guinness World Records to its name: Longest solar journey; first solar circumnavigation; fastest solar crossing of the South China Sea; fastest solar crossing of the Atlantic and - no surprises here -- a record for the world's largest solar-powered boat.

"I really hope our journey will make people realize the sheer power of solar energy and that it can be used efficiently for long-haul travel,

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