The Zipperboat
Yasuhiro Suzuki originally came up with the Zipper Motorboat in 2004, but it didn’t shove off until 2010. Like many great and extremely weird things, it was art project and not a meant as a practical means of conveyance. No passengers were on this voyage as the vessel hadn’t been tested for rollover risk. You can’t exactly go skiing behind it, but maybe you can do some really slow-speed tubing.
The Plongeur
The history of submarines is surprisingly long, dating back to 415 B.C. The first submarine propelled by something other human power was the French Plongeur, which relied on compressed air to propel itself. It was first used in 1863, and was retired by 1872. The sub was the inspiration for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
The Marjata
Bulbous radome for protecting radar dishes. Helicopter landing pad. The shape of a clothes iron. The Marjata has it all. The Norwegian spy ship wades in Arctic waters to keep tabs on the Russians. The model you see above first set sail in 1992, though subsequent variants have gotten bigger and less interesting in shape.
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The Sea Shadow (IX-529)
Lockheed Martin built the Sea Shadow to be a stealth plane of the water, evading detection by conventional radar. From 1984 to 1993, the United States Navy tested it in secrecy before unveiling it to the public. It uses a SWATH design, in which two powered nacelles are submerged just under the surface of the water. The boat was dismantled in 2012 after the Navy unsuccessfully tried to sell it off.
