The superyacht Launchpad, owned by Mark Zuckerberg, has caught the attention of the world, not only in the waves of the ocean but also in the environmental sphere. The Feadship yacht, which is 387 feet long and powered by four MTU 20V 4000 M93L diesel engines, has already consumed more than 2 million liters of diesel since October 2024, emitting an estimated 5,300 tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Following months of globetrotting, demonstrations, and heavy-seas hedonism, Launchpad has just taken dock at the exclusive La Ciotat shipyard in France to undergo maintenance. This is following a long world tour with Zuckerberg, his wife Priscilla Chan, and their children, which included the fjords of Norway to the South Pacific. On a 9,600-nautical-mile round voyage between San Francisco and Port Everglades, the yacht consumed 676,800 liters of diesel.
To make the whole thing even more lavish, there is the $30 million support yacht, Abeona, which accompanies Launchpad. The two have served as moving luxury hubs, with helipads, water sports equipment, and large suites. In Norway, Zuckerberg came in on a helicopter, landing on the yacht to meet the local aviation regulations, but he was met by opposition from environmental activists and locals.
The Yacht CO? Tracker Collective explained that the yacht consumed 2,394 liters of diesel in only four days between Positano and Naples, releasing 6.2 tons of CO?. During cruising, Launchpad is said to use 1,165 gallons of fuel an hour, which translates to 40 tons of CO? emissions, equivalent to the same amount released by 630 cars in the same duration.
To give an idea of how serious this is, an hour of cruising on Launchpad has a carbon footprint that is the same as driving a gasoline car around the world four times.
With a net worth of $267 billion, Zuckerberg might be sitting in oceanic opulence, but the environmental impact of his floating mansion is enormous. The yacht is now docked at La Ciotat, a luxury “spa” to accommodate the largest ships in the world, awaiting its tune-up before it undertakes another high-emissions journey.