The tech keeping Plastiki afloat

Adventurer and entrepreneur David de Rothschild and his crew of six traveled more than 17,000km across the Pacific on a craft made from discarded PET bottles and plastics. ZDNet Asia's sister site ZDNet Australia offers a glimpse of the tech below deck on the epic Plastiki voyage.

The Plastiki completed its journey on Jul. 26 after docking at Sydney's National Maritime Museum.

Photo and caption by Luke Hopewell

The crew of the Plastiki used satellite data gear from Inmarsat and Hewlett-Packard laptops and phones to broadcast classroom sessions and news interviews from the middle of the ocean. Over 16,000 people followed the voyage of Plastiki through Twitter and Facebook alone.

Photo by Plastiki
Caption by Luke Hopewell

The HP Mini Note catches some rays on the deck of the Plastiki.

Photo by Plastiki
Caption by Luke Hopewell

Inmarsat kept the Plastiki in touch with the land and emergency services.

Photo by Plastiki
Caption by Luke Hopewell

The operations center of the Plastiki keeps the boat going. The Plastiki is powered by several car batteries. The crew had to make modifications to the power supply to make sure it could go the distance.

Photo by Plastiki
Caption by Luke Hopewell

The Plastiki and its crew make their way to the finish line in Sydney.

Photo by Patrick Riviere
Caption by Luke Hopewell

This is the armadillo-like shell that the crew members lived in during the four-month journey.

Photo and caption by Luke Hopewell

Inside the armadillo.

Photo and caption by Luke Hopewell

Skipper Jo Royle tells us that the walls inside the armadillo are made from PET bottles with a foam core, meaning that the boat was able to bend and stretch on the voyage.

Photo and caption by Luke Hopewell

The catamaran-shaped Plastiki is kept afloat by hundreds of PET bottles lined within the boat's arms, or amas.

Photo and caption by Luke Hopewell

This story was first posted in ZDNet Australia.