Nuclear waste tanker pilots futuristic aluminium sail

A tanker normally used to ship nuclear waste around the world is testing a new aluminium sail that could dramatically cut the fuel consumption and climate impact of ocean tankers.

The Pacific Grebe is spending three weeks in October travelling around the coast of the UK testing the FastRig, a 20-metre-tall sail designed to help propel large tankers across the high seas.

The retractable, blade-like sail weighs about 35 tonnes and can be unfurled in…