Chinese sailor Guo Chuan set out on November 18 from Qingdao, a coastal city in East China's Shandong Province, for a solo, nonstop sail around the globe.

Guo, 47, aims to travel 21,600 nautical miles in about 130 days, navigating in a Class 40 boat named after his hometown of Qingdao. Guo will pilot his boat across the Pacific Ocean to Cape Horn in Chile, enter the Atlantic Ocean, then go on to the Indian Ocean via the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa before crossing the islands of Indonesia to return to Qingdao. He will eat artificial dehydrated food during the voyage, and use a desalination unit for drinking water.

Guo is the first Chinese sailor to have taken part in the Clipper Round the World (2006) and the first Chinese to complete the Volvo Ocean Race (2008-09).

Guo received a master's degree in aircraft control from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics and then worked on China's commercial satellite launch projects. Hejoined friends at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club for a day's sailing during a trip to Hong Kong in 2000, at which point he decided to become a professional sailor.