Massive tanker style ships carrying desalination plants, that sail the ocean and deliver fresh water to wherever it's needed.-- simonj, Dec 20 2007 Half Baked - nuclear-powered desalination ship http://tech-db.istc...ra.htm?open&id=0347(Can't tell if this is a patent, a whitepaper or a spec.) [DrCurry, Dec 20 2007] Half Baked http://jobfunctions...=13209&docid=124934(This one *is* a whitepaper.) [DrCurry, Dec 20 2007] Half Baked - solar and wind powered! http://www.zulenet...._craft_carrier.html(Evidently a *lot* of people have thought about this concept. Or at least drawn pictures and written whitepapers.) [DrCurry, Dec 20 2007] Be your own desal ship! http://www.landfall...ion.com/-sas07.html2 pints of fresh water, with only 1 hour of hand pumping! [mylodon, Dec 21 2007] whimsical... in reality probably faster to drop a water-purification setup.-- FlyingToaster, Dec 20 2007 Unless, of course, the water is needed in Kansas.-- globaltourniquet, Dec 20 2007 Yes, but you're not in Kansas now ......-- 8th of 7, Dec 20 2007 Isn't this what the USS Abraham Lincoln did after the Aceh tsunami? (And the Bonhomme Richard in Sri Lanka.)-- angel, Dec 20 2007 It's not a bad idea, becuase it's so mobile, but to be effective the ship would need a nuclear powerplant.-- 8th of 7, Dec 20 2007 I wonder if it is easier to expend the energy desalinating sea-water, or towing icebergs to where they're needed.-- coprocephalous, Dec 20 2007 It is certainly possible. Large ships already have their own desal systems for drinking water. As mentioned, navy ships have provided desal water to towns during disasters like the tsunami.
It comes down to need and economics. Several companies offer mobile, packaged water treatment systems that can be flown or trucked in. I know one system you can set up on a beach, run a hose out into the ocean, and be operational in hours. So, why do you need a dedicated ship?-- jdlaugh, Dec 20 2007 How to redeem your public image in a week: 1. Sell off all of your weapons and buy a slew of desalination plants. 2. Set them up in locations where they are REALLY needed. 3. Change your orgnisation's name to DesAl Qaeda.-- UnaBubba, Dec 20 2007 You can buy little desalination pumps ('water makers') for little boats. So if you want to bake this yourself, buy a little water maker, get in a canoe, go across the bay, make a little water, and give it to someone. Other then that it's just a matter of scale.-- mylodon, Dec 21 2007 LOL [DrCurry]'s third link, that one is a converted aircraft carrier!-- simonj, Dec 21 2007 Huh. Looks like, from the illustration, that the boat is sucking salt water from the right side of the frame, and depositing it as fresh water on the left.-- mylodon, Dec 21 2007 halfbakery