Richard Jenkins (engineer)

Jenkins was born in England to Australian parents. He was raised in Lymington, a small village near Southampton and on his grandfather's farm in Western Australia. He became interested in sailing and engineering at a young age: he was dinghy sailing at age 10, working on the last airworthy Short Sunderland flying boat at age 12, building an International Moth dinghy in his early teens and doing design work for super maxi yachts while attending college. He first crossed the Atlantic when he was 16.{{cite magazine|last=Fisher|first=Adam|title=The Drone That Will Sail Itself Around the World|url=https://www.wired.com/autopia/2014/02/saildrone|magazine=Wired|publisher=Condé Nast|accessdate=18 February 2014}} He also helped to sail the Matthew, a replica of John Cabot’s 15th century caravel in which the explorer discovered the island of Newfoundland.Greenbird: About the team. http://www.greenbird.co.uk/about-the-greenbird/the-team

On 26 March 2009, Jenkins broke the world land-speed record for a wind-powered vehicle.Wind powered car breaks record. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7968860.stm He reached 126.1 mph (202.9 km/h) in his land yacht Greenbird on Ivanpah Lake, a dry lake in California's Mojave Desert.{{cite news |last1=Borroz |first1=Tony |title=Freaky Speeder Rides the Wind to World Record |url=https://www.wired.com/2009/03/british-man-set/ |access-date=18 October 2021 |publisher=Wired |date=March 27, 2009}} The previous record of {{convert|116|mi/h|km/h|abbr=on}} was set by Americans Bob Dill (engineer/designer) and Bob Schumacher (pilot/builder) on 20 March 1999, driving their wind-powered vehicle the Iron Duck in the same location.NALSA NEWS FLASH: New Landsailing Speed Record. https://www.nalsa.org/speed_record.htm "Top speed is actually quite scary. The structure and tyre grip is all at the limit, so keeping it in a straight line under full control takes full concentration," Jenkins told The Guardian.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/aug/19/windpower.renewableenergy|title=Richard Jenkins hopes to set a new wind-powered landspeed record|last1=Adam|first1=David|date=2008-08-20|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-07-25|last2=correspondent|first2=environment|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}

Greenbird is the fifth iteration of the land yacht that was first known as Windjet. Greenbird is powered by a carbon composite wing that produces thrust similarly to how an airplane wing produces lift.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2008/08/wind-powered-ra/|title=Riding the Wind Into the Record Book|last=Squatriglia|first=Chuck|date=2008-08-21|magazine=Wired|access-date=2019-07-25|issn=1059-1028}}

Jenkins attempted to break the world record for sailing on ice on the frozen Canyon Ferry Reservoir in Montana with a vehicle adapted for ice.{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/4126297/Greenbird-ice-yacht-Sailing-towards-a-miracle-on-ice.html|title=Greenbird ice yacht: Sailing towards a miracle on ice|last=Roe|first=Nicholas|date=2009-01-06|access-date=2019-07-25|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}

File:Saildrone in 2019 NOAA Arctic mission.jpg

The innovation that allowed Greenbird to break the land speed record was a unique wing/tail/tab system that produced aerodynamic wing control. A tail mounted midway up the wing allowed for very precise control of the "angle of attack" of the wing to produce maximum power while consuming very little energy. Jenkins adapted that system to an autonomous surface vehicle known as a saildrone and founded a company by the same name.{{Cite web|url=https://www.saildrone.com/news/how-saildrone-wing-was-born|title=How the Saildrone Wing Was Born|website=www.saildrone.com|access-date=2019-07-26}} Saildrones are wind powered for propulsion and use solar to power onboard sensors and computers{{Cite web|url=https://www.saildrone.com/news/what-is-saildrone-how-work|title=What Is a Saildrone and How Does It Work?|website=www.saildrone.com|access-date=2019-07-26}} used to gather ocean data{{Cite news|last=|first=|date=15 May 2018|title=This Man Is Building an Armada of Saildrones to Conquer the Ocean|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2018-05-15/this-man-is-building-an-armada-of-saildrones-to-conquer-the-ocean|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-03-28|newspaper=Bloomberg}}

In 2013, Saildrone 1 (SD 1) became the first unmanned surface vehicle to cross an ocean using only wind power. The saildrone was deployed from San Francisco on October 1 and sailed 2100 nautical miles arriving in Kaneohe, Hawaii, 34 days later.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2013/11/17/saildrone-new-world-record-for-autonomous-sailboat/|title=Saildrone: New World Record for Autonomous Sailboat >> Scuttlebutt Sailing News|date=2013-11-17|website=Scuttlebutt Sailing News|language=en-US|access-date=2019-07-26}}

In 2019, SD 1020 became the first unmanned vehicle to complete a circumnavigation of Antarctica,{{Cite web |title=Saildrone Completes First Autonomous Circumnavigation of Antarctica |url=https://www.saildrone.com/news/unmanned-vehicle-completes-antarctica-circumnavigation |access-date=2019-08-05 |website=www.saildrone.com}} crossing every longitude line in the Southern Ocean.{{Cite news |date=2019-08-05 |title=Saildrone's Journey Around Antarctica Uncovers New Climate Clues |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-05/saildrone-s-journey-around-antarctica-uncovers-new-climate-clues |access-date=2020-09-08 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}

The First Saildrone Antarctic Circumnavigation mission, funded by the Li Ka-shing Foundation, was launched from Point Bluff, New Zealand, on January 19, 2019. The 196-day mission covered 13,670 miles (22,000 km) in the Southern Ocean and returned to the same port on August 3, 2019. During the mission, SD 1020 had to survive freezing temperatures, 50-foot waves, 80 mph winds and even collisions with giant icebergs. SD 1020 had a special "square" wing designed especially for the Southern Ocean. “While the square rig has less performance range than the regular saildrone wing and struggles to sail upwind, it does a great job of sailing downwind and can still get you where you need to go in the Southern Ocean. You inevitably sacrifice maneuverability for survivability, but we have created something that gets the job done and that the Southern Ocean just can’t destroy!" said Jenkins in a company blog post.{{cite web |title=Saildrone Completes First Autonomous Circumnavigation of Antarctica |url=https://www.saildrone.com/news/unmanned-vehicle-completes-antarctica-circumnavigation |website=Saildrone.com |access-date=14 October 2021}} The voyage is a "a technological feat that was unfathomable just a decade ago."{{Cite web|url=https://www.noaa.gov/news/saildrone-is-first-to-circumnavigate-antarctica-in-search-for-carbon-dioxide|title=Saildrone is first to circumnavigate Antarctica, in search for carbon dioxide {{!}} National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|website=www.noaa.gov|access-date=2019-08-05}}

Having established Saildrone vehicles as the most capable and proven USVs available, Jenkins expanded the technology to address new market needs including lifecycle solutions for offshore wind farms and ocean mapping. The 72-foot (22 m) Saildrone Surveyor, launched in January 2021, is the only autonomous platform capable of performing IHO-compliant bathymetry surveys to depths of 23,000 feet (7,000 m).{{cite news |last1=Mendoza |first1=Jim |title=They call it the 'Surveyor,' but it does much more than map the ocean floor |url=https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2021/07/13/they-call-it-surveyor-this-unmanned-craft-does-much-more-than-map-ocean-floor/ |access-date=14 October 2021 |publisher=Hawaii News Now |date=July 12, 2021}}

In September 2021, in another world first, Richard successfully sent a Saildrone into the eye of a Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean. Saildrone Explorer SD 1045 captured HD video and images from the eye of the storm while collecting data about air-sea interactions that is expected to transform our understanding of hurricane forecasting.{{cite news |last1=Patel |first1=Vimal |title='Saildrone' Footage Offers Rare Peek Inside a Category 4 Hurricane |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/03/us/saildrone-boat-hurricane-video.html |access-date=13 October 2021 |work=The New York Times |date=3 October 2021}} “Saildrone is going where no research vessel has ever ventured, sailing right into the eye of the hurricane, gathering data that will transform our understanding of these powerful storms. After conquering the Arctic and Southern Ocean, hurricanes were the last frontier for Saildrone survivability. We are proud to have engineered a vehicle capable of operating in the most extreme weather conditions on earth," Jenkins said in a NOAA press release.{{cite web |title=A world first: Ocean drone captures video from inside a hurricane |url=https://www.noaa.gov/news-release/world-first-ocean-drone-captures-video-from-inside-hurricane |website=NOAA.gov |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |access-date=14 October 2021}}

In April 2022, Jenkins was recognized with the annual Albert A. Michelson Award, presented by the Navy League of the United States. The award honors "a civilian scientist, technical innovator or technical organization for scientific or technical achievement." Jenkins was selected for the award in part for Saildrone's 2021 Atlantic hurricane mission; the award citation stated that the measurements and video collected "could transform our understanding of hurricane forecasting."{{Cite web |last1=Lucey |first1=Danielle |last2=Editor-in-Chief |date=2022-04-05 |title=Decker, Jenkins Among Those Honored at SecNav Luncheon Awards Ceremony |url=https://seapowermagazine.org/decker-jenkins-among-those-honored-at-secnav-luncheon-awards-ceremony/ |access-date=2022-06-08 |website=Seapower |language=en-US}}

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Category:Living people

Category:1976 births

Category:Alumni of Imperial College London

Category:English people of Australian descent

Category:Mechanical engineers

Category:People from Lymington

Category:British inventors

Category:World record holders