you can actually gain energy while moving upwind, it’s counterintuitive but the existence of tacking in sailing (doing a zig-zag upwind) makes it a bit easier to internalize for me.
you can actually gain energy while moving upwind, it’s counterintuitive but the existence of tacking in sailing (doing a zig-zag upwind) makes it a bit easier to internalize for me.
Dave@lemmy.nz 4 weeks ago
That’s a little bit different.
In your case, the wind is blowing and the craft is getting energy from it.
I was referring to the energy coming from the motor pushing you through the air and then trying to claim some energy from the wind you created by pushing yourself through the air with the motor.
If there is wind blowing you could in theory get some energy from it, but the thing about sailboats is there is a constant need to adjust the sail when you turn. A turbine on the front isn’t going to be angled correctly whichever direction you turn.
But I think I worked out the reason for the turbine. It’s powered by the battery (it’s not intended to charge the battery) and I think is there to pull the top of the contraption forward so it doesn’t fall over when accelerating.