Magneto-hydro-dynamic "Yamato 1" hydrofoil

Yamato 1 is a boat built in the early 1990s by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd at Wadasaki-cho Hyogo-ku, Kobe. She uses magneto hydrodynamic drives (MHDs) driven by liquid helium-cooled superconductors and can travel at 15 km/h.

Yamato 1 was the first working prototype of its kind. She was completed in Japan in 1991, by the Ship & Ocean Foundation (later known as the Ocean Policy Research Foundation). The ship, which includes two MHD thrusters, which have no moving parts, was first successfully operated in Kobe harbour in June 1992.