Maersk Invests in Prometheus, Start-up Electrofuels Company

A.P. Moller – Maersk has announced that Maersk Growth, its venture capital arm, has made a leading investment in Prometheus Fuels, a Silicon Valley-based startup with a promising direct air capture technology to enable cost-efficient, carbon-neutral e-fuels for shipping. From … Continue reading

Trawling For Plastic — Ocean Cleanup Boom Yields Meager Results

The Ocean Cleanup‘s latest attempt to clean plastic from the Northern Pacific has proven to be unimpressive.  After two offshore supply vessels, donated by Maersk, towed a 520-meter wide boom for 120 hours, they succeeded in collecting around 8 tonnes … Continue reading

Sailing on Bubbles of Air — MSC Orders 30 Silverstream Hull Air Lubrication Systems

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has ordered more than 30 hull air lubrication systems from UK firm Silverstream Technologies to be installed on current orders of newbuild large container ships. The vessels applying the air lubrication systems are expected to be delivered … Continue reading

A Look at Venetian Gondolas — Designs New and Old

This is a post about contrasts – new and old, fanciful and time-tested, inspiration and tradition. This is also a post about Venetian gondolas. The gondola, the iconic Venetian rowing boat, has been around since at least the 11th century. … Continue reading

Record Slaughter of 1,400 Dolphins in Faroe Islands Triggers Anger and Review

The inhabitants of the Faroe Islands, a windswept archipelago in the North Atlantic roughly halfway between Norway and Iceland, have been hunting long-finned pilot whales and white-sided dolphins for food for almost a thousand years. The summer hunt is known … Continue reading

Golden Ray & the Billion Dollar Blunder — Tallying the Cost

We recently posted about the NTSB determination that the car carrier Golden Ray capsized due to an error in a stability calculation prior to sailing. Now as the salvage operation is wrapping up and the costs are being tallied, the … Continue reading

UK Startup Wins Funding for Unmanned “Green Submarine”

The UK startup, Oceanways, has been awarded funding to develop an autonomous hydrogen/battery-powered submarine in a UK government competition to tackle emissions from shipping. The firm has been given £380,000 ($525,000 ) to develop the sub to deliver parcels without … Continue reading

Australia to Build Nuclear Subs Under New Strategic Partnership with US & UK

AP reports that President Joe Biden announced on Wednesday a new U.S. security alliance with Australia and Britain that will provide Australia with the technology and capability to deploy nuclear-powered submarines. The agreement would make Australia the first country without nuclear … Continue reading

NTSB Determines Inaccurate Stability Calculations Caused Capsizing of Golden Ray

The final report issued yesterday by the National Transportation Safety Board Office (NTSB) summarizes what happened on Sept. 8, 2019, when the roll-on/roll-off vehicle carrier Golden Ray capsized as it transited outbound through St. Simons Sound near Brunswick, Georgia. ​​Less … Continue reading

Container Ship Port Backlog Breaking Both Ends of the Supply Chain

The Marine Exchange of Southern California reports a new record for congestion in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. As of Monday, of 140 ships in the ports, 85 are container ships. Only 31 containerships are alongside the … Continue reading

MS Satoshi, Attempt to “Seastead” on a Bitcoin Cruise Ship Fails, Not Surprisingly

The Guardian recently published “The disastrous voyage of Satoshi, the world’s first cryptocurrency cruise ship.” Thanks to Joan Druett for pointing it out. In 2020, three cryptocurrency enthusiasts bought a pandemic-bargain cruise ship with plans to create a libertarian utopia, … Continue reading

Ever Ace, World’s Newest Largest Container Ship Transits Suez Canal

Ever Ace, the newest world’s largest container ship capable of carrying the 23,992 TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) transitted the Suez Canal at the beginning of this month. The Ever Ace is notionally 28 TEU larger than the previously largest container … Continue reading

All Available Boats — Captain Michael Day’s Radio Call On 9/11/01

There are moments in history when an individual makes the right choice at exactly the right moment and it makes all the difference. Such was the case with LT. Michael Day on the morning of September 11, 2001, in New … Continue reading

9/11 Maritime Videos, Photos, & Oral History on the Tanker Mary Whalen Through 9/26

Portside NewYork is hosting an exhibit of 9/11 videos, documents, and photography in a video booth on the deck of their flagship Mary A. Whalen in Red Hook, Brooklyn, and in an outdoor exhibit of banners. The exhibit runs through … Continue reading

Commemorating 9/11 Boatlift After 20 Years — Flotilla on the Hudson & Anniversary Tribute Ashore

Tomorrow, two events will commemorate the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 boatlift, in which an estimated 500,00 people were rescued from Lower Manhattan following the attacks of 9/11.  We recently posted about the Flotilla and Blessing of the Fleet hosted … Continue reading

Retired Marine Corps Colonel Pleads Guilty in ‘Fat Leonard’ Scandal

On March 14, 2017, The Department of Justice announced that retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Bruce Loveless and eight other high-ranking Navy officers had been indicted for accepting luxury travel, elaborate dinners, and services of prostitutes from foreign defense contractor … Continue reading

Large Rubber Duck, Named Joy, Mysteriously Appears in Belfast Harbor, Maine

Since at least 2007, a variety of large inflatable rubber ducks have been showing up in harbors around the world. Most recently, a 25-foot high inflatable rubber duck appeared mysteriously in Belfast harbor in Maine. The word “JOY” was emblazoned … Continue reading

Royal Navy Pays Tribute to Last Surviving World War 2 Bomb Disposal Diver

From the Royal Navy News: The last surviving World War 2 bomb disposal diver was honoured during a visit to the Diving Museum in Gosport. John Payne, now 96, was on the first ‘P’ Party 1571 group – a select team … Continue reading