Update: Fate of Pocket Battleship Graf Spee’s Nazi Eagle Still Undecided

The Battle of the River Plate, fought in the South Atlantic in December 1939 was the first naval battle of the Second World War and ended with the scuttling of the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee. While the battle … Continue reading

Jubilee Sailing Trust’s Tall Ship Lord Nelson to be Auctioned to Pay Off Charity’s Debts

The tall ship Lord Nelson is being offered for sale at an online auction by the global advisory and investment firm Gordon Brothers, acting on behalf of Richard Lewis and Sarah O’Toole, the joint administrators of Jubilee Sailing Trust Limited. … Continue reading

Debris Found from Submersible Titan — Five Onboard Believed to Have Died in Catastrophic Implosion

Pieces of the Titan submersible were found today on the ocean floor, about 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic. The debris was ‘consistent with a catastrophic implosion,’ the Coast Guard says. All five onboard the submersible are believed … Continue reading

Long-Standing Concerns About Safety of Missing Titan Submersible

As frantic search and rescue efforts continue to attempt to locate the missing submersible Titan, which went missing on Sunday on an expedition to dive on the wreck of the Titanic, long-standing concerns about the safety of the submersible have … Continue reading

Update: the Race to Find Missing Submersible Titan With Five Onboard — 40 Hours of Air Remaining

The US Coast Guard is racing against time to locate and rescue a submersible with five people onboard that went missing on Sunday morning in the North Atlantic while attempting to dive on the wreck of the Titanic. The area … Continue reading

Search Underway for Submersible Missing on Titanic Wreck Dive

The US Coast Guard is searching for a submersible carrying five people on a dive on the wreck of the Titanic in the North Atlantic off Newfoundland. The submersible Titan, which began its dive towards the Titanic wreck site on … Continue reading

Happy Juneteenth — When Emancipation Arrived by Steamship

Happy Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth National Independence Day is also the newest Federal holiday. The legislation was signed into law by President Biden in 2020. The holiday commemorates when … Continue reading

Update: Ship Tracking Casts Doubt on Coastguard’s Account of Boat Disaster Off Greece

We recently posted about an overloaded fishing boat carrying migrants that capsized and sank early on Wednesday morning in deep waters about 50 miles (80 km) from the southern Greek coastal town of Pylos. The BBC reports on evidence casting … Continue reading

Roger Payne, Biologist Who Discovered Whale Song, Has Died at 88

Harrison Smith, writing in the Washington Post, describes Roger Payne as “a biologist who put his ear to the ocean and pioneered the study of whale songs.” His recordings of their hypnotic, intricately patterned vocalizations — haunting wails, birdlike chirps, … Continue reading

Overloaded Migrant Boat Sinks Near Greece — at Least 78 Dead, Hundreds Feared Drowned

Reuters reports that rescuers scoured the seas off Greece on Thursday following a shipwreck that killed at least 78 migrants, as hopes of survivors dwindled and fears grew that hundreds more, including children, may have drowned inside the crowded vessel’s … Continue reading

Retired Passenger Liner SS United States Threatened by Eviction From Philadelphia Pier

The SS United States, the largest and fastest transatlantic passenger liner ever built in America, has spent the last 27 years moored at Philadephia’s Pier 82 on the Delaware River. The venerable ship is now threatened with eviction.  Yahoo reports … Continue reading

Three British Tourists Missing After Fire on Dive Boat in Egyptian Red Sea

The BBC reports that three British tourists are missing after a fire broke out on board a dive boat on the Egyptian Red Sea.   Twenty-six other people, including 12 Britons, were rescued from the boat, called Hurricane. Initial reports suggested the … Continue reading

Endangered Vaquita Porpoises Hanging on, Conservation Efforts May be Working

Great News. The vaquita porpoise, the world’s rarest marine mammal, swimming right on the edge of extinction, appears to be hanging on. Conservation measures in Mexico to save the endangered porpoise may be working.     The New York Times reports … Continue reading

The Mighty Windjammer Preussen — Animation From Mariner’s Mirror Podcast

Here is an animation from a Mariner’s Mirror podcast about perhaps the greatest windjammer of the early twentieth century, the Preussen. One of the Flying P-Liners, built for the F. Laeisz shipping company in 1902, she was the only five-masted … Continue reading

Hurtigruten to Launch Zero Emissions Electric Cruise Ship With Solar Sails by 2030

Norwegian ferry and expedition cruise operator Hurtigruten has revealed plans for a zero-emissions electric cruise ship with retractable sails fitted with solar panels, that will sail the Norwegian coast by 2030. The 500-passenger ship is designed for coastal service with … Continue reading

On the 79th Anniversary of D-Day, Remembering Andrew Jackson Higgins and the Higgins Boat

I am aware of only one man who was praised by both Eisenhower and Hitler. A repost on the 79th anniversary of D-Day. General Dwight David Eisenhower said that “Andrew Higgins … is the man who won the war for … Continue reading

More Supply Chains Woes — Strikes at West Coast Ports

Following over a year of negotiations, labor negotiations at US West Coast ports have stalled, resulting in a wave of strikes. As reported by Splash247.com, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), which represents more than 22,000 dock workers at West Coast … Continue reading