First autonomous ship readies for maiden trip
AFP, PLYMOUTH, England
The
Mayflower 400 — the world’s first intelligent ship — bobs gently in a light swell as it stops its engines in Plymouth Sound, off England’s southwest coast, before self-activating a hydrophone designed to listen to whales.
The 15m trimaran, which weighs nine tonnes and navigates with complete autonomy, is preparing for a transatlantic voyage.
On its journey the vessel, covered in solar panels, is to study marine pollution and analyze plastic in the water, as well as track aquatic mammals.
Meirwen Jenking-Rees, a student engineer, catches a rope following a sea trial of the