Kaushik Patowary
Feb 16, 2021
2 comments
In 1926, a 2,000-ton steel-hulled schooner named
Buckau made an extraordinary crossing across the Atlantic. Although the
Buckau was technically a sailing ship, it had no sails—at least, not conventional ones.
Rather than thin masts and billowing sheets of white, the
Buckau had two huge cylinders that rose from its deck and spun. By a physical phenomenon called the Magnus Effect, the spinning poles generated a propulsive force that carried the ship forward. It’s the same force that footballers use to bend a corner kick, cricketers use to swing a delivery, and a tennis player use to hang the ball just a little longer in the air.