At the recent Toy Fair in New York I was almost depressed at the sheer number of green themed toys that seemed to be destined for landfills. The trouble with most of these toys is that they were plain old plush dolls with some connection to an endangered animal — which on the surface isn’t bad but doesn’t really engage your imagination on any level. That’s why I’m drawn to this Japanese toy which is based on the popular bear mascot Relakkuma: This novelty item features Relakkuma (also known as Relaxuma) and his honey-colored friend Korilakkuma are enjoying the soothing effects of a faux hot tub. When you place the toy in sunlight their wobble as if they’re relaxing in the faux water. You can pre-order the Relakkuma Onsen Solar Mascot from National Console Support.

I just spotted the following news item ecogeek.org which seemed very oddly familiar to me:

Chinese Cargo Ships Will Have Solar Sails

“Australian company Solar Sailor has signed a deal with the largest Chinese shipping line COSCO to fit their tankers with large solar-powered sails. The sails are 30 meters long, covered with solar PV panels that will provide 5 percent of the ships’ electricity and will harness enough wind to reduce fuel costs by 20 to 40 percent. The sails are controlled by a computer that angles them for maximum wind and solar efficiency and the company claims that the sails will pay for themselves within four years.”

It then hit me that I had seen the concept of solar sails years ago in 1985 in the science fiction anime film Odin – Starlight Mutiny (オーディーン　光子帆船スターライト):

“In the year 2099, mankind has colonized parts of the Solar System thanks to the evolution of space travel. To venture further beyond what man has accomplished, the space vessel Starlight is launched. After rescuing a mysterious girl from a wreckage near the asteroid fields, the crew of the Starlight plot a perilous journey towards the Canopus system in search of the planet known only as “Odin” – the possible key to all forms of life.”

By the way if that plot of the movie reminds you of Star Blazers it’s because the movie was produced by Yoshinobu Nishizaki who also produced all of the Space Cruiser Yamato films and TV shows. Here’s a music video (of sorts) which shows footage of the nautical looking spacecraft from Odin that features solar sails: