Epsom College is in a race to become the first team to sail an autonomous boat across the Atlantic.

In June, ten sixth-form pupils will launch their vessel "That'll Do 2", the successor to the college's unsuccessful 2016 boat, hoping it will complete the treacherous 4,000-mile journey to the east coast of Antigua - a journey that should take approximately six months.

Jamie Styles, head of Chemistry and one of the staff members leading the project, said: "We have a monumental challenge ahead of us, but we are determined to produce a vessel that has the potential to reach the finish line.

"The biggest threats we face are from external factors that are largely out of our control: fishing nets, adverse weather and larger boats.

"However, we aim to stay one step ahead with a carefully plotted route and a robust boat that is fit to face the elements."

The boat, created by students from Maths, Geography, Science and Computing, is 1.8m long, made from a glass-reinforced polymer and uses a student-programmed navigation system, which uses GPS and a compass.

It will update its own Twitter feed (@Epsom_Transat) with its location during its journey.

To date, there have been 24 attempts, with universities, engineering institutions and the US and French naval academies; Epsom College is the only school in the world to compete.

The previous boat had support from the Royal Navy, and travelled 374km in four days and 21 hours before being recovered ashore.