Explorer
Explorer is Saildrone smaller long-endurance uncrewed surface vehicle for ocean observation. It is used for fisheries research, metocean data collection, ecosystem monitoring and satellite calibration missions over extended periods at sea.
Facts
- Company: Saildrone
- Product type: Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
- Status: Commercial
- Capability focus: Generalist
- Website: https://www.saildrone.com/platform/explorer
Market context
Explorer is Saildrone autonomous surface vehicle for ocean data collection using wind and solar power for long-duration missions.
- Target environment: Open ocean and coastal marine environments.
- Workflow context: Ocean data collection, environmental monitoring and climate research using wind and solar-powered autonomous surface vehicles.
- Customer context: Oceanographic researchers and environmental monitoring agencies.
- Deployment model: Commercial autonomous surface vehicle with global ocean deployment.
- Commercial maturity: Established USV platform with broad research and government adoption.
- Adoption constraints: Wind and solar propulsion limits speed. Best suited to persistent monitoring missions.
- Market position: Saildrone foundational USV platform for long-duration ocean data collection and environmental monitoring.
- Adjacent products: Saildrone Voyager, Surveyor, ocean monitoring USVs
Audience
Marine operators
Workflow
Ocean data collection, environmental monitoring and climate research using wind and solar-powered autonomous surface vehicles.
Deployment environment
Open ocean and coastal marine environments.
Specifications
- Endurance Months: Up to 12 months at sea months
- Status: Commercially deployed
- Form Type: Sail-driven ocean drone
- Length: 7 m
- Propulsion: Wind-powered wing sail with solar-electric backup
- Power: Solar-powered electronics and instruments
- Sensors Summary: AIS transceiver, smart camera array, environmental sensors (wave height and period, barometric pressure, ocean currents, seafloor depth, chlorophyll)
- Operational Role: Ocean data collection, environmental monitoring, maritime domain awareness
- Workflow Focus: Oceanographic survey, environmental monitoring, maritime surveillance
- Operational Environment: Open ocean, global
- Autonomy Model: Autonomous waypoint navigation with obstacle avoidance
- Communication: Iridium satellite
- Deployment Maturity: Commercially deployed across multiple ocean basins
Tags
- Peer Group: Maritime USV
- Workflow: Marine data collection
- Capability: Autonomous navigation
- Deployment Environment: Outdoor field environment
- Stack Layer: Finished robot platform
- Commercial Stage: Commercial product
Articles
- 2026-04-07 - Note - Maritime autonomy is broadening
Comparable Systems
- Voyager - Saildrone - Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
- Surveyor - Saildrone - Uncrewed Surface Vehicle
Explorer canonical Korthos profile