At just 5-feet long, the Miniboat Inspiration is a humble vessel. But the uncrewed boat, launched 100 miles off the coast of Rhode Island last Saturday under sunny skies and over rolling swells, has begun a journey that may span the Atlantic. .
Visiting Japan is likely a distant dream in most of our minds, but for one miniboat, designed and built by a class of Columbia City 5th graders, hitting Japanâs coast is in its near future.
An educational program out of the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, simply dubbed the âMiniboat Program,â is working with students at Columbia City Elementary to send a miniboat across the Pacific to a sister school in Japan, and students in Japan will also be sending a boat to Oregon.
A student places flags inside the miniboat Second Wind. Aurora Biggers / The Chief
The Miniboat Program, according to the Columbia River Maritime Museum education director Nate Sandel, provides a one-of-a-kind educational opportunity that introduces students to ocean science, international exchange, and the STEAM fields of science, technology, engineering, the arts and math, helping to inspire future careers.