Critics said the ruling will make it harder for lenders, to cite one example, to determine whether a property fits the definition of vessel or fixed structure and thus the terms of a loan.

FORBES: Supreme Court Rules Floating House Is Not A Boat

Tuesday's explosion at the No. 2 reactor in the Fukushima complex, 150 miles north of Tokyo, for the first time raised the possibility that the key containment structure of the unit, which protects the reactor vessel and keeps dangerous radioactive materials from leaking out, had been damaged.

WSJ: Japan's Nuclear Crisis Escalates

The vessel had last stopped three weeks ago at Samoa, where repairs to the catamaran's structure were made after it was discovered that beams supporting the boat had buckled and were out of place.

CNN: Plastiki ready to leave New Caledonia